ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 16,507 Shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel sold 16,507 shares of Cisco in Q4 (a 1.9% reduction), leaving it with 861,733 shares valued at $66.38 million; Cisco represents 2.4% of ZWJ’s portfolio and is its 14th-largest holding.
• Analysts have trended positive, with Evercore upgrading Cisco to "outperform" and raising its target to $100; MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $89.76.
• Cisco beat quarterly estimates and raised its dividend, reporting $1.04 EPS vs. $1.02 expected and revenue of $15.35 billion (+9.7% YoY), and declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.42 (annualized $1.68, ~2.0% yield).

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Free Report) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 861,733 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after selling 16,507 shares during the period. Cisco Systems makes up 2.4% of ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $66,379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 3,189,645 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $218,236,000 after purchasing an additional 205,043 shares in the last quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Cisco Systems in the third quarter valued at approximately $8,563,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Cisco Systems by 8.9% in the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 686,469 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $46,165,000 after buying an additional 56,057 shares in the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. lifted its stake in Cisco Systems by 213.8% in the third quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 20,497 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $1,402,000 after buying an additional 13,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional lifted its stake in Cisco Systems by 11.0% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 144,336 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $9,875,000 after buying an additional 14,334 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CSCO shares. Evercore raised shares of Cisco Systems from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $80.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Cisco Systems in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $94.00 price objective on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Cisco Systems from $82.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.76.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

Shares of CSCO stock opened at $82.61 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $79.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $76.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $326.30 billion, a PE ratio of 28.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.83. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $53.83 and a 12 month high of $88.18.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The network equipment provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 19.22% and a return on equity of 27.88%. The business had revenue of $15.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.94 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This is a boost from Cisco Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Cisco Systems's payout ratio is presently 58.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In related news, SVP Maria Victoria Wong sold 551 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.54, for a total transaction of $42,724.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 27,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,167,785.78. This represents a 1.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 3,132 shares of the 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. This trade represents a 1.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 46,431 shares of company stock valued at $3,574,820 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong AI momentum and quarterly traction: recent coverage highlights Q2 revenue growth (~9.7% YoY), networking orders up ~20% and AI infrastructure orders of ~$2.1B, plus management raising full‑year EPS guidance — supportive of continued top‑line and order strength. Cisco Remains A Buy As AI Tailwinds Broaden
• Positive Sentiment: Potential tuck‑in acquisition of Israeli AI/cybersecurity startup Astrix (reported $250M–$350M) would expand Cisco’s AI‑agent security portfolio at a modest price and reinforce its security/AI positioning. M&A News: Cisco in Talks to Acquire Astrix
• Positive Sentiment: Relative-value/security market angle: recent comparisons to CrowdStrike emphasize Cisco’s expanding security stack and lower valuation — a constructive narrative for investors preferring cheaper exposure to cybersecurity. CRWD vs CSCO: Which Cybersecurity Stock Should You Buy Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation check after a strong run: coverage asks whether CSCO (~$82) is now fairly priced after ~47% 1‑year gains; this frames investor debate between growth potential and stretched multiples. Is Cisco Fairly Priced?
• Neutral Sentiment: Increased retail/institutional attention noted in trending posts — more eyeballs can amplify moves but is not a directional catalyst by itself. Trending Stock Note
• Negative Sentiment: Deep-dive cash‑flow critique: a sell analysis argues the $28B Splunk deal tripled Cisco’s debt and structurally compressed free cash flow, assigning a $69 fair value — a direct counterweight to bull narratives and a potential driver of selling pressure if FCF recovery stalls. AI Top-Line Boom Can't Hide The Free Cash Flow Problem
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst sentiment cooled: Zacks downgraded Cisco from “strong‑buy” to “hold,” which can blunt upside by reducing conviction among some retail and model‑driven investors. Zacks Downgrade

Cisco Systems Company Profile

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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