Sigma Planning Corp Boosts Stock Position in Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

Key Points

• Sigma Planning Corp increased its stake in Cisco by 19.9% in Q4, buying 11,033 shares to hold 66,535 shares worth about $5.13 million.
• Cisco beat Q2 estimates, raised its outlook, and is seeing investor enthusiasm from AI-infrastructure momentum, which analysts say is driving the recent share rally and valuation re-rating.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive (consensus "Moderate Buy" with a $89.81 average price target), the stock trades near its 1-year high (~$92), Cisco raised its quarterly dividend to $0.42, and insiders have made modest sales.

Sigma Planning Corp lifted its position in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Free Report) by 19.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,535 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,033 shares during the quarter. Sigma Planning Corp's holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $5,125,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marquette Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cisco Systems in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new position in shares of Cisco Systems in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 115.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 468 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Cisco Systems in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Holos Integrated Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cisco Systems in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. 73.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Cisco Systems News

Here are the key news stories impacting Cisco Systems this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results and AI/infra momentum — analysts note Cisco’s Q2 beat, raised outlook and AI-infrastructure product momentum as key drivers of the recent share rally and valuation re-rating. A Look At Cisco (CSCO) Valuation After Strong Q2 Results And AI Infrastructure Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: High odds of another earnings beat — a Zacks piece flags Cisco’s strong earnings-surprise history and the factors (revenue strength, margin leverage) that make another upside surprise likely, supporting near-term sentiment. Will Cisco (CSCO) Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: Policy tailwind for quantum networking — a new U.S. quantum policy bill advancing toward commercialization could accelerate funding and deployment for quantum-related networking tech, an area where Cisco is referenced as a key player. This is a medium-term catalyst for products beyond core routing/switching. National Quantum Policy Bill Advances: IBM, IonQ, Cisco in Focus
• Positive Sentiment: Technical/market momentum — multiple market reports note Cisco hitting fresh peaks and outperforming the Nasdaq index recently, reflecting strong investor demand and positive flow into the name. Cisco Hits Fresh Peak Amid Nasdaq Composite Today Buzz
• Neutral Sentiment: CNBC mention on trader radar — Cisco was referenced on CNBC’s “Final Trades,” a short-term media mention that can attract attention but is not a fundamental catalyst by itself. Netflix, Cisco, Zoom and a health care stock on CNBC's 'Final Trades'
• Neutral Sentiment: Peer strength — Arista (a data-center networking peer) is gaining momentum ahead of its earnings, highlighting competitive dynamics in the data-center space; this is worth monitoring but hasn’t materially changed Cisco’s trajectory yet. This Nvidia Rival Gains Momentum Ahead Of Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: Ongoing bullish write-ups — several bullish theses and valuation analyses (Substack/InsiderMonkey/Yahoo) are circulating, reinforcing investor interest but largely echoing the same drivers: AI demand, recurring revenue, and attractive cash returns. Is Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) A Good Stock To Buy Now?

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CSCO. Erste Group Bank cut Cisco Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Cisco Systems from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Cisco Systems from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, HSBC boosted their target price on Cisco Systems from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cisco Systems has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.81.

Cisco Systems Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ CSCO opened at $91.85 on Friday. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.58 and a 1-year high of $92.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $81.46 and a 200-day moving average of $77.93. The firm has a market cap of $362.80 billion, a PE ratio of 32.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.92.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The network equipment provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $15.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.11 billion. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 27.88% and a net margin of 19.22%.Cisco Systems's revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 2nd. This is a positive change from Cisco Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Cisco Systems's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 7,981 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.50, for a total transaction of $634,489.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 187,097 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,874,211.50. This represents a 4.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 3,132 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.74, for a total value of $249,745.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 188,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,040,000.62. The trade was a 1.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 46,431 shares of company stock worth $3,574,820 over the last three months. 0.01% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems, Inc is a global technology company that designs, manufactures and sells networking hardware, software and telecommunications equipment. Its core business focuses on enabling enterprise and service-provider networks through products such as routers, switches, network security appliances and wireless systems. Over time Cisco has broadened its portfolio to emphasize software-defined networking, cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure and edge computing solutions that help organizations build and manage modern IT environments.

In addition to hardware, Cisco offers a growing range of software platforms and subscription services for network management, security, analytics and collaboration.

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