Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) Stock Position Lowered by Scotia Capital Inc.

Key Points

• Scotia Capital Inc. reduced its stake in Cisco Systems by 4.2% during the first quarter, now holding 526,778 shares, valued at approximately $32.5 million.
• Several hedge funds increased their positions in Cisco, with one firm, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC, rising by 28.9%, now owning over 4 million shares worth about $249 million.
• Cisco recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.41 per share, leading to an annualized yield of 2.4%, with a dividend payout ratio of 66.94%.

Scotia Capital Inc. cut its position in shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 526,778 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after selling 23,359 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc.'s holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $32,507,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in Cisco Systems in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. JDM Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 160.4% in the fourth quarter. JDM Financial Group LLC now owns 487 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in Cisco Systems by 224.7% during the first quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 578 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Cisco Systems in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Cisco Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Cisco Systems in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of Cisco Systems in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Cisco Systems from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $65.00 to $73.00 in a report on Monday, June 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cisco Systems currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $70.55.

Cisco Systems Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:CSCO traded down $0.73 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $67.76. The stock had a trading volume of 3,418,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,067,389. The company has a market capitalization of $268.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.71, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $66.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.81. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $44.50 and a one year high of $69.78.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The network equipment provider reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.04. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 17.60% and a return on equity of 26.48%. The firm had revenue of $14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. Cisco Systems's dividend payout ratio is 66.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, CFO Richard Scott Herren sold 15,678 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.52, for a total value of $1,027,222.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 309,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,281,257.36. This represents a 4.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Maria Victoria Wong sold 762 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total value of $48,821.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 36,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,366,553.59. This represents a 2.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 97,335 shares of company stock valued at $6,271,054. Corporate insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Cisco Systems Profile

Cisco Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells Internet Protocol based networking and other products related to the communications and information technology industry in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, Japan, and China. The company also offers switching portfolio encompasses campus switching as well as data center switching; enterprise routing portfolio interconnects public and private wireline and mobile networks, delivering highly secure, and reliable connectivity to campus, data center and branch networks; wireless products include wireless access points and controllers; and compute portfolio including the cisco unified computing system, hyperflex, and software management capabilities, which combine computing, networking, and storage infrastructure management and virtualization.