Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO Stock: Retirement Systems of Alabama Decreases Stake

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its holdings in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,969,076 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock after selling 143,791 shares during the quarter. Cisco Systems accounts for about 0.6% of Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $211,932,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cisco Systems during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,129,647,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Cisco Systems by 7.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 207,106,569 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $25,278,492,000 after buying an additional 13,512,872 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Cisco Systems in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,892,379,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Cisco Systems by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 43,450,141 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,103,654,000 after buying an additional 1,143,106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Cisco Systems during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,714,574,000. Institutional investors own 73.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 6,487 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.53, for a total transaction of $723,495.11. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 167,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,638,447.48. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Thimaya K. Subaiya sold 5,832 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.47, for a total transaction of $650,093.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 128,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,310,741.54. This trade represents a 4.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 44,869 shares of company stock worth $5,005,620 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Key Cisco Systems News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cisco is expanding its AI-security tools: AI Defense will use Anthropic’s Claude Mythos for adversarial testing of AI applications and agents, alongside new Splunk Agent Observability and Cisco IQ capabilities. The launch could strengthen Cisco’s position as businesses seek ways to secure and monitor AI agents. Cisco AI security announcement
• Positive Sentiment: One analysis suggests Cisco shares could be undervalued by about 15%, offering a potential valuation argument for investors. Cisco valuation analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: The November 12 earnings report is the main near-term catalyst. Investors will look for evidence that AI infrastructure demand supports Cisco’s growth and its stated $7.5 billion AI target; options trading points to expectations of a potentially large post-earnings move. Cisco earnings and options outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Risk appetite remains a headwind: reports cite a roughly 20% decline in CSCO and a $145 billion loss in market value from its peak, while ETFs were net sellers of $64.1 million in shares on November 5. ETF flows for Cisco
• Negative Sentiment: A Morgan Stanley analyst reportedly moved Cisco to Equal-weight, adding to caution ahead of results. Investors may also be wary if earnings fail to reassure the market about AI-related demand. Cisco earnings expectations and AI concerns

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Cisco Systems in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Cisco Systems in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $135.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Cisco Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Cisco Systems in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $127.87.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

Shares of CSCO opened at $98.65 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $108.59 and a 200 day moving average of $101.75. The company has a market capitalization of $388.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.54, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.01. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.10 and a 12 month high of $130.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $17.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.84 billion. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 30.16% and a net margin of 20.95%. The business’s revenue was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. Cisco Systems has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.050-5.110 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.320-1.340 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 4.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 2nd. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is presently 50.30%.

About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems, Inc develops networking, cybersecurity, collaboration and observability technologies for businesses, governments and other organizations. Its products include routers, switches, wireless systems and data center infrastructure, along with security software and services that help organizations connect and protect their networks.

The company also provides collaboration tools through its Webex platform and observability capabilities through its software offerings, including technology from Splunk, which Cisco acquired in 2024.