South Dakota Investment Council Trims Holdings in Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

South Dakota Investment Council lessened its stake in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) by 41.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 100,291 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock after selling 72,209 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $7,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Intesa Sanpaolo Wealth Management bought a new position in Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Networth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 276.4% in the first quarter. Networth Advisors LLC now owns 335 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Cisco Systems during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 137.0% during the first quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 346 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cisco Systems Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of CSCO stock opened at $113.56 on Friday. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.75 and a 1 year high of $130.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $447.59 billion, a PE ratio of 36.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $117.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $95.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $15.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.56 billion. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.14% and a return on equity of 28.44%. The company’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.96 earnings per share. Cisco Systems has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.160-1.180 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.270-4.290 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 6th. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio is 54.55%.

Trending Headlines about Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI-related networking orders have strengthened Cisco’s outlook, prompting a modest increase in estimates of the stock’s fair value. The demand suggests Cisco is gaining from data-center and artificial-intelligence infrastructure spending. Cisco Stock Fair Value Edges Higher After AI Networking Order Strength
• Positive Sentiment: New alliances focused on AI and quantum-safe security could broaden Cisco’s investment story beyond traditional networking, supporting longer-term demand for its security and infrastructure products. Cisco AI and Quantum-Safe Security Alliances
• Neutral Sentiment: Cisco pulled back after six consecutive sessions of gains, a move characterized as profit-taking rather than a clear deterioration in the company’s fundamentals. Cisco Slips After Six Straight Sessions of Gains
• Neutral Sentiment: Palantir’s upcoming earnings are renewing debate about whether exceptionally high valuations can be justified by AI growth. Although the story concerns PLTR, the read-through may influence sentiment toward highly valued AI beneficiaries such as Cisco. Palantir’s Earnings Setup Puts Its AI Growth Story Back on Trial Again
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts argue that much of Cisco’s AI upside may already be reflected in the share price ahead of its quarterly report, increasing the risk of disappointment even if results are solid. Cisco Q4 Preview
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a concern: Cisco’s strong AI-related rally has raised questions about whether expected growth is sufficient to support the current multiple, potentially limiting further upside. Cisco Valuation Concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Concerns that the AI capital-spending boom resembles the late-1990s technology bubble create a risk for Cisco because its networking growth is tied to continued data-center investment. A slowdown or spending reset could pressure orders and the stock’s valuation. AI Capital-Expenditure Boom Concerns

Insider Activity at Cisco Systems

In other news, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 6,586 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.31, for a total value of $772,603.66. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 177,223 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,790,030.13. The trade was a 3.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total value of $2,568,642.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 637,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,469,312.55. This trade represents a 3.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 47,650 shares of company stock worth $5,668,823 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on CSCO. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Argus raised their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $100.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Cisco Systems from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cisco Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.14.

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.