Cisco Systems (CSCO) Competitors $70.63 +0.36 (+0.51%) Closing price 10/24/2025 04:00 PM EasternExtended Trading$70.63 0.00 (0.00%) As of 10/24/2025 07:59 PM Eastern Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Polygon.io. Learn more. Add Compare Share Share Competitors Stock AnalysisAnalyst ForecastsChartCompetitorsDividendEarningsFinancialsHeadlinesInsider TradesOptions ChainOwnershipSEC FilingsShort InterestSustainabilityTrendsBuy This Stock CSCO vs. GOOG, GOOGL, MSFT, NVDA, PANW, ZM, ANET, DELL, HPE, and IBMShould you be buying Cisco Systems stock or one of its competitors? The main competitors of Cisco Systems include Alphabet (GOOG), Alphabet (GOOGL), Microsoft (MSFT), NVIDIA (NVDA), Palo Alto Networks (PANW), Zoom Communications (ZM), Arista Networks (ANET), Dell Technologies (DELL), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), and International Business Machines (IBM). These companies are all part of the "computer and technology" sector. Cisco Systems vs. Its Competitors Alphabet Alphabet Microsoft NVIDIA Palo Alto Networks Zoom Communications Arista Networks Dell Technologies Hewlett Packard Enterprise International Business Machines Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, media sentiment, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and earnings. Is CSCO or GOOG more profitable? Alphabet has a net margin of 31.12% compared to Cisco Systems' net margin of 18.45%. Alphabet's return on equity of 34.31% beat Cisco Systems' return on equity.Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Cisco Systems18.45% 27.06% 10.20% Alphabet 31.12%34.31%24.88% Which has more volatility and risk, CSCO or GOOG? Cisco Systems has a beta of 0.97, suggesting that its stock price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Alphabet has a beta of 1, suggesting that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500. Do institutionals and insiders believe in CSCO or GOOG? 73.3% of Cisco Systems shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 27.3% of Alphabet shares are held by institutional investors. 0.0% of Cisco Systems shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.0% of Alphabet shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term. Do analysts prefer CSCO or GOOG? Cisco Systems currently has a consensus price target of $74.72, indicating a potential upside of 5.79%. Alphabet has a consensus price target of $249.68, indicating a potential downside of 4.16%. Given Cisco Systems' higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Cisco Systems is more favorable than Alphabet.Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Cisco Systems 0 Sell rating(s) 10 Hold rating(s) 13 Buy rating(s) 1 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.63Alphabet 3 Sell rating(s) 5 Hold rating(s) 21 Buy rating(s) 6 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.86 Which has higher valuation and earnings, CSCO or GOOG? Alphabet has higher revenue and earnings than Cisco Systems. Cisco Systems is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Alphabet, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings RatioCisco Systems$56.65B4.93$10.18B$2.6226.96Alphabet$371.40B8.48$100.12B$9.3927.74 Is CSCO or GOOG a better dividend stock? Cisco Systems pays an annual dividend of $1.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Alphabet pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Cisco Systems pays out 62.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Alphabet pays out 8.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Cisco Systems has increased its dividend for 13 consecutive years and Alphabet has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Cisco Systems is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth. Does the media favor CSCO or GOOG? In the previous week, Alphabet had 169 more articles in the media than Cisco Systems. MarketBeat recorded 220 mentions for Alphabet and 51 mentions for Cisco Systems. Cisco Systems' average media sentiment score of 1.49 beat Alphabet's score of 1.07 indicating that Cisco Systems is being referred to more favorably in the media. Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment Cisco Systems 46 Very Positive mention(s) 0 Positive mention(s) 4 Neutral mention(s) 0 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Positive Alphabet 161 Very Positive mention(s) 13 Positive mention(s) 25 Neutral mention(s) 14 Negative mention(s) 2 Very Negative mention(s) Positive SummaryAlphabet beats Cisco Systems on 15 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks. Get Cisco Systems News Delivered to You Automatically Sign up to receive the latest news and ratings for CSCO and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter. Subscribe Now View SMS TermsBy entering your phone number and clicking the sign-up button, you agree to receive periodic text messages from MarketBeat at the phone number you submitted, including texts that may be sent using an automatic telephone dialing system. Message and data rates may apply. Message frequency will vary. Messages will consist of stock alerts, news stories, and partner advertisements/offers. Consent is not a condition of the purchase of any goods or services. Text HELP for help/customer support. Unsubscribe at any time by replying "STOP" to any text message that you receive from MarketBeat or by visiting our mailing preferences page. Read our full terms of service and privacy policy. New MarketBeat Followers Over TimeWhat are MarkeBeat Followers?This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding CSCO and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period. Skip ChartMedia Sentiment Over TimeWhat is Media Sentiment?This chart shows the average media sentiment of NASDAQ and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.Skip Chart CSCO vs. The Competition Export to ExcelMetricCisco SystemsCOMP IndustryComputer SectorNASDAQ ExchangeMarket Cap$277.79B$21.96B$33.06B$10.67BDividend Yield2.33%2.33%3.18%4.82%P/E Ratio26.9617.19103.6930.16Price / Sales4.932.301,287.44133.57Price / Cash18.4219.1638.0861.44Price / Book5.966.387.576.60Net Income$10.18B$701.13M$820.47M$276.82M7 Day Performance0.71%1.05%2.51%2.58%1 Month Performance4.10%3.92%3.70%3.76%1 Year Performance26.71%2,439,673.16%24,146.19%33.84% Cisco Systems Competitors List Export to ExcelCompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)CSCOCisco Systems4.9103 of 5 stars$70.63+0.5%$74.72+5.8%+26.2%$277.79B$56.65B26.9686,200Positive NewsGOOGAlphabet4.6768 of 5 stars$252.30-1.8%$246.26-2.4%+58.3%$3.06T$350.02B26.93190,200Trending NewsUpcoming EarningsAnalyst ForecastGOOGLAlphabet3.9723 of 5 stars$251.55-2.0%$257.60+2.4%+59.7%$3.05T$350.02B26.85183,323Trending NewsUpcoming EarningsAnalyst ForecastMSFTMicrosoft4.9829 of 5 stars$516.16-0.1%$618.97+19.9%+23.3%$3.84T$281.72B37.84228,000Trending NewsUpcoming EarningsAnalyst ForecastNVDANVIDIA4.869 of 5 stars$181.20-0.8%$222.23+22.6%+32.7%$4.40T$130.50B51.6436,000Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastInsider TradePANWPalo Alto Networks3.9402 of 5 stars$214.34+1.2%$217.22+1.3%+19.1%$143.50B$9.22B133.6616,068Positive NewsZMZoom Communications4.464 of 5 stars$83.71+2.2%$91.74+9.6%+16.0%$25.32B$4.67B22.087,412Analyst ForecastInsider TradeANETArista Networks4.7398 of 5 stars$145.97-0.3%$163.94+12.3%+56.1%$183.50B$7.00B57.424,412Positive NewsInsider TradeGap UpDELLDell Technologies4.9268 of 5 stars$150.45+1.7%$161.26+7.2%+31.6%$101.19B$101.45B22.13108,000Trending NewsEx-DividendAnalyst ForecastHPEHewlett Packard Enterprise4.6475 of 5 stars$23.32+2.0%$25.50+9.3%+21.2%$30.75B$30.13B28.4261,000Analyst ForecastGap UpHigh Trading VolumeIBMInternational Business Machines4.4494 of 5 stars$283.67+0.0%$289.08+1.9%+41.0%$263.75B$62.75B46.07293,400Trending NewsEarnings ReportDividend AnnouncementAnalyst ForecastAnalyst Revision Related Companies and Tools Related Companies Alphabet Competitors Alphabet Competitors Microsoft Competitors NVIDIA Competitors Palo Alto Networks Competitors Zoom Communications Competitors Arista Networks Competitors Dell Technologies Competitors Hewlett Packard Enterprise Competitors International Business Machines Competitors Top 10 Stock Comparisons Semiconductor Stocks Artificial Intelligence Stocks Growth Stocks Magnificent Seven Stocks Pharmaceutical Stocks Ecommerce Stocks Bitcoin Stocks Meme Stocks Cryptocurrency Stocks Cybersecurity Stocks This page (NASDAQ:CSCO) was last updated on 10/25/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff From Our PartnersNEW LAW: Congress Approves Setup For Digital Dollar?Trump Ally Says Congress Approved the Setup for a Digital Dollar 2.0 But according to Rep. Marjorie Taylor ...Goldco Precious Metals | SponsoredIf You Keep Cash In A U.S. Bank Account… Read This NOWThe Treasury Department just issued a stunning warning: U.S. banks could lose up to $6.6 trillion of custom...Banyan Hill Publishing | SponsoredINVESTOR ALERT: Tiny “$3 AI Wonder Stock” on the Verge of Blasting OffRight now, we’re witnessing a monumental shift in the world.Traders Agency | Sponsored$100 Trillion “AI Metal” Found in American Ghost TownJeff Brown recently traveled to a ghost town in the middle of an American desert… To investigate what could...Brownstone Research | SponsoredMove $1,000 into this stock before Nov 6The End of Tesla? "Hold onto your Tesla stock." That's the message insiders at Tesla have been giving staff...Altimetry | SponsoredBuy UBER immediatelyBULLISH: It's time to buy this 'hidden' AI stock An award-winning stock-rating system has turned BULLISH on...Chaikin Analytics | Sponsored“Fed Proof” Your Bank Account with THESE 4 Simple StepsStarting as soon as a few months from now, the United States government will make a sweeping change to bank ac...Weiss Ratings | SponsoredFront-Run Buffett's Shocking Gold MoveA Historic Gold Announcement Is About to Rock Wall Street? For months, sharp-eyed analysts have watched the...Golden Portfolio | Sponsored Adding Choose a watchlist: Watchlist Adding You have already added ten stocks to your watchlist. Upgrade to MarketBeat All Access to add more stocks to your watchlist. Adding Cisco Systems, Inc. Please log in to your account or sign up in order to add this asset to your watchlist. Share Cisco Systems With A Colleague Link copied to clipboard. Get 30 Days of MarketBeat All Access for Free Sign up for MarketBeat All Access to gain access to MarketBeat's full suite of research tools. Start Your 30-Day Trial MarketBeat All Access Features Best-in-Class Portfolio Monitoring Get personalized stock ideas. Compare portfolio to indices. Check stock news, ratings, SEC filings, and more. Stock Ideas and Recommendations See daily stock ideas from top analysts. Receive short-term trading ideas from MarketBeat. Identify trending stocks on social media. Advanced Stock Screeners and Research Tools Use our seven stock screeners to find suitable stocks. Stay informed with MarketBeat's real-time news. Export data to Excel for personal analysis. Sign in to your free account to enjoy these benefits In-depth profiles and analysis for 20,000 public companies. Real-time analyst ratings, insider transactions, earnings data, and more. Our daily ratings and market update email newsletter. Sign in to your free account to enjoy all that MarketBeat has to offer. Sign In Create Account Your Email Address: Email Address Required Your Password: Password Required Log In or Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Google Forgot your password? Your Email Address: Please enter your email address. Please enter a valid email address Choose a Password: Please enter your password. Your password must be at least 8 characters long and contain at least 1 number, 1 letter, and 1 special character. Create My Account (Free) or Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Google By creating a free account, you agree to our terms of service. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
