Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. Raises Stake in Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) by 56.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 39,601 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,301 shares during the quarter. Cisco Systems accounts for about 1.8% of Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc.’s holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $3,050,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CSCO. Green Alpha Advisors LLC grew its stake in Cisco Systems by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 12,349 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $951,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Benchmark Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,449 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $715,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY lifted its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 24,622 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,685,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Yoder Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Yoder Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,945 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $270,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weaver Consulting Group boosted its position in Cisco Systems by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Weaver Consulting Group now owns 9,940 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $680,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CSCO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Cisco Systems in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. HSBC upped their target price on Cisco Systems from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Erste Group Bank lowered Cisco Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Cisco Systems from $82.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.55.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

Shares of CSCO stock opened at $79.92 on Friday. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $78.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $75.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $315.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.87. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $52.11 and a 12 month high of $88.18.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last announced 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 return on equity of 27.88% and a net margin of 19.22%.The company had revenue of $15.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.11 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Cisco Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.54%.

Insider Activity at Cisco Systems

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

Cisco Systems 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.