Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Shares Down 1.7% – Here’s What Happened

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)’s stock price dropped 1.7% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $78.35 and last traded at $78.64. Approximately 20,432,168 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 14% from the average daily volume of 23,694,908 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.01.

Key Stories Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: Heavy AI order flow, stronger guidance and product momentum — Analysts and coverage pieces highlight Cisco’s growing AI infrastructure business (AI revenue > $2B in 2025) and FY26 targets for higher recognized revenue and orders, plus Silicon One/G300 chip traction and buybacks that support valuation upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Confirmed hyperscaler demand and partnerships — Reports note heavy AI orders, a new Cisco Secure AI Factory in Australia with NVIDIA and SharonAI, and guidance upgrades that validate near-term revenue drivers. These operational signals are the main fundamental reason some investors remain bullish. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend and income appeal — Multiple retirement/dividend-focused articles include NASDAQ dividend names and long-term “set it and forget it” recommendations, supporting demand from income-oriented holders if rates fall. That dynamic could help support the stock over time. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry positioning and market studies — Cisco is cited as a leader in email encryption and unified communications market reports, underscoring long-term TAM exposure but not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Management outreach — Cisco presented at the Morgan Stanley TMT conference; transcripts provide detail for investors but did not introduce a surprise that would flip sentiment. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Macro and geopolitical uncertainty / market rotation — Broader market factors (regional tensions, shifting bond yields/rate expectations, and profit-taking after YTD gains) are likely weighing on the stock today despite company positives; one article notes regional risks that could affect U.S. investment flows. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed commentary and historical caution — Some retail/advice pieces remind investors of past Cisco drawdowns and caution about growth re-rates; these narratives can pressure sentiment during short-term pullbacks. Read More.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CSCO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore raised shares of Cisco Systems from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $80.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Argus raised Cisco Systems to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Citic Securities raised their price objective on Cisco Systems from $75.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Finally, President Capital lowered their target price on Cisco Systems from $90.00 to $88.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.55.

Cisco Systems Trading Down 1.7%

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market cap of $310.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.59, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.87.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The network equipment provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 27.88% and a net margin of 19.22%.The firm had revenue of $15.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.11 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.94 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. 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. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is presently 58.95%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kristina M. Johnson sold 13,481 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.13, for a total transaction of $1,039,789.53. Following the transaction, the director owned 61,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,753,521.90. The trade was a 17.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeetendra I. Patel sold 11,248 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total value of $854,848.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 262,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,970,976. The trade was a 4.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 75,677 shares of company stock valued at $5,811,211. 0.01% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Union Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $687,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 19,902,205 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,534,020,000 after purchasing an additional 193,322 shares during the last quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 84.3% during the fourth quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,545 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $889,000 after buying an additional 5,280 shares during the period. Storen Legacy Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth $298,000. Finally, Bayban bought a new position in Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth $525,000. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.