Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Stock Price Down 1.1% – Here’s Why

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)’s share price fell 1.1% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $79.05 and last traded at $80.01. 26,812,640 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 14% from the average session volume of 23,534,064 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.87.

Key Stories Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cisco reported heavy AI infrastructure orders and raised FY2026 revenue guidance — direct upside to revenue visibility and investor sentiment around Cisco’s AI tailwind. Cisco Systems (CSCO) Valuation Check As AI Infrastructure Orders And Guidance Upgrades Gain Traction
• Positive Sentiment: Reports highlight a multi-billion dollar run of AI orders (article cites ~$2.1B) — supports near-term revenue and proves Cisco’s role in AI infrastructure beyond GPU vendors. Forget Nvidia: This Networking Giant Just Landed $2.1 Billion in AI Orders
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco launched Australia’s first “Cisco Secure AI Factory” with SharonAI and NVIDIA—an example of go-to-market partnerships that can accelerate deployments and service revenue. Cisco Deepens AI And 6G Push With Secure Australia Factory
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco is listed as a leader in recent email-encryption and secure-communications vendor rankings — reinforces competitive positioning in cybersecurity (an ongoing revenue driver). Email Encryption Company Evaluation Report 2025
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/market stories and sector reports note large long-term growth in unified communications and cybersecurity markets, which benefits Cisco over time but doesn’t change quarter-by-quarter fundamentals immediately. United States Unified Communications Market Report 2025-2033
• Neutral Sentiment: Transcript coverage from Cisco’s Morgan Stanley presentation is now available — useful for detail but primarily reiterates the company’s AI and product roadmap rather than surprising the market. Cisco Presents at Morgan Stanley TMT Conference — Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage in ETF/sector pieces (e.g., cybersecurity ETF stories) highlights the sector tailwind; indirect support for Cisco but not an immediate catalyst. Why Cybersecurity ETF CIBR Belongs in Every Retirement Portfolio Right Now
• Negative Sentiment: Short-interest reporting in recent feeds is inconsistent/erroneous (zero and NaN figures), creating confusing headlines that can spook some traders even if not economically meaningful. (Data sources show conflicting short-interest notes.)
• Negative Sentiment: Resurfaced comparisons to dot-com era behavior and skeptical investor commentary introduce headline risk and can pressure sentiment even as fundamentals improve. Why Cisco Is Nothing Like Its Dot-Com Self — And Could Hit $90 by 2027

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on CSCO. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $70.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.55.

Cisco Systems Stock Down 1.1%

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $77.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $316.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.87.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The network equipment provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business posted $0.94 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. This is a positive change from Cisco Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other news, Director Michael D. Capellas sold 10,850 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.13, for a total transaction of $836,860.50. Following the sale, the director owned 146,368 shares in the company, valued at $11,289,363.84. This trade represents a 6.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Charles Robbins sold 19,545 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 671,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,003,220. The trade was a 2.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 75,677 shares of company stock worth $5,811,211. Insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 33,666 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $2,596,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Main Management ETF Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Cisco Systems by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Main Management ETF Advisors LLC now owns 12,528 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $965,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA raised its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 13,656 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,052,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Cairn Investment Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Cairn Investment Group Inc. now owns 24,146 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,860,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Juncture Wealth Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Juncture Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 15,042 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,159,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.33% of the company’s stock.

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.