The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Price Target to $116.00

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Cisco Systems from $75 to $116 while keeping a neutral rating, implying only slight downside from the stock’s prior close.
• Cisco reported strong fiscal Q3 results, with EPS of $1.06 and revenue of $15.84 billion, both above analyst estimates and up 12% year over year.
• The company also raised full-year FY2026 guidance and highlighted surging AI infrastructure orders, including about $9 billion from hyperscalers, signaling improving demand and growth momentum.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by The Goldman Sachs Group from $75.00 to $116.00 in a report released on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the network equipment provider's stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's price target suggests a potential downside of 0.33% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on CSCO. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Cisco Systems in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. 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 research note on Thursday, February 12th. Zacks Research lowered Cisco Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Cisco Systems in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on Cisco Systems in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $108.32.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

Shares of Cisco Systems stock traded up $14.51 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $116.38. The company had a trading volume of 34,663,707 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,660,469. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.36. The stock has a market cap of $459.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.82, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Cisco Systems has a 12-month low of $62.30 and a 12-month high of $119.36.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $15.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.56 billion. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 19.22% and a return on equity of 27.88%. Cisco Systems's revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.96 EPS. Cisco Systems has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.160-1.180 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.270-4.290 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Cisco Systems will post 3.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In related news, CEO Charles Robbins sold 19,545 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total transaction of $1,485,420.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 671,095 shares of the company's stock, valued at $51,003,220. This trade represents a 2.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 7,981 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.50, for a total value of $634,489.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 187,097 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,874,211.50. This represents a 4.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 46,431 shares of company stock worth $3,574,820. Insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Cisco Systems by 6.9% in the third 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 during the period. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 198,549 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $13,905,000 after buying an additional 26,455 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 686,469 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $46,165,000 after buying an additional 56,057 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 213.8% during the 3rd 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, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Cisco Systems by 40.0% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 3,490,482 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $238,818,000 after acquiring an additional 997,738 shares during the period. 73.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cisco reported revenue of $15.84 billion, up 12% year over year and above Wall Street estimates, while adjusted EPS of $1.06 also topped expectations. Cisco Reports Third Quarter Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised full-year fiscal 2026 guidance, with revenue now projected at $62.8 billion-$63.0 billion and EPS at $4.27-$4.29, both above consensus, signaling confidence in demand trends. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco said AI infrastructure orders are surging, including about $9 billion in hyperscaler AI infrastructure orders for FY2026, reinforcing the market’s view that Cisco is becoming a bigger AI play. Article about AI infrastructure orders
• Positive Sentiment: The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, which supports its appeal to income-focused investors. MarketBeat dividend note
• Neutral Sentiment: Cisco is cutting about 4,000 jobs as part of an AI-focused restructuring, with up to $1 billion in related charges; investors see this as a margin/efficiency move, but it also adds near-term execution risk. WSJ article

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.