Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $94.72 and last traded at $94.30, with a volume of 13410039 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $92.63.

Cisco Systems News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and previews signal a likely Q3 beat and margin focus, which supports upside expectations ahead of the print. Cisco Q3 Earnings Preview
• Positive Sentiment: Consensus research notes growth in earnings expectations and constructive commentary about Cisco’s secular positioning (AI/networking exposure), which underpins higher price targets at some shops. Investment Story Shifting
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco confirmed participation in multiple May–June investor events (J.P. Morgan, etc.), increasing visibility with the financial community and giving management more chances to articulate guidance and margin drivers. Investor Events
• Neutral Sentiment: Research notes show a split analyst narrative — some lift targets while others caution that recent optimism reduces the margin for disappointment; this makes post-earnings guidance the key catalyst. Analyst Views Diverge
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro calendar (inflation data) and its potential impact on guidance and IT spending is a near-term watch item highlighted in week-ahead previews. Week Ahead
• Negative Sentiment: Cisco recently underperformed peers and there were headlines noting a sharp session decline, signaling near-term profit-taking and sensitivity to broader market moves. These short-term flows could amplify volatility into earnings. Stock Drops Despite Market Gains
• Negative Sentiment: MarketWatch flagged underperformance relative to competitors, a reminder that any weak guidance or margin miss could prompt a larger pullback. Underperformance vs. Peers

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC increased their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Cisco Systems from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Cisco Systems in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, CICC Research increased their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $84.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.29.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $364.02 billion, a PE ratio of 32.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 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. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $82.32 and a 200 day moving average of $78.56.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The network equipment provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.11 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 2nd were issued a $0.42 dividend. This is a boost from Cisco Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is 58.95%.

Insider Transactions at Cisco Systems

In related news, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 3,132 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.74, for a total value of $249,745.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 188,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,040,000.62. This trade represents a 1.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Charles Robbins sold 19,545 shares of Cisco Systems 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 $51,003,220. This trade represents a 2.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 46,431 shares of company stock worth $3,574,820 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cisco Systems

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSCO. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,473,272,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 8,718.3% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 51,952,421 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $400,190,000 after acquiring an additional 51,363,281 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 103.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 29,289,151 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $2,256,144,000 after acquiring an additional 14,874,407 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 110.2% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 18,406,442 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $1,259,369,000 after acquiring an additional 9,648,265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 50,320,905 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $3,876,219,000 after acquiring an additional 7,679,422 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.33% of the company’s stock.

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.