Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Downgraded to Hold Rating by HSBC

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) was downgraded by HSBC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday. They currently have a $120.00 target price on the network equipment provider’s stock. HSBC’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 5.75% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. New Street Research raised their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $82.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Cisco Systems from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Argus increased their target price on Cisco Systems from $100.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Cisco Systems from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Cisco Systems from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cisco Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.43.

Cisco Systems Trading Down 8.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:CSCO opened at $113.47 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $117.23 and a 200 day moving average of $99.00. The company has a market cap of $447.24 billion, a PE ratio of 33.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.02. Cisco Systems has a 12-month low of $65.75 and a 12-month high of $130.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.05. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.95% and a return on equity of 30.54%. The company had revenue of $17.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.99 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Cisco Systems has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.050-5.110 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.320-1.340 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Cisco Systems will post 4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 2,607 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.12, for a total transaction of $315,759.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 172,727 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,920,694.24. This represents a 1.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was 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 directly owned 637,085 shares in the company, valued at $76,469,312.55. This trade represents a 3.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 31,134 shares of company stock valued at $3,739,000 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cisco Systems

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

Cisco Systems News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cisco exceeded estimates with fiscal Q4 non-GAAP earnings of $1.22 per share versus $1.17 expected, while revenue rose 18% year over year to approximately $17.3 billion, above the roughly $16.8 billion consensus. Cisco Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2026 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure demand remains a major growth catalyst. Cisco received $9.3 billion in hyperscaler AI orders during fiscal 2026, including $4 billion in Q4, and expects about $7.5 billion of related revenue in fiscal 2027. Networking product orders increased 40% year over year. Chuck Robbins Says AI Is Fueling a Networking Supercycle
• Positive Sentiment: Management forecast fiscal Q1 revenue of $18.0 billion to $18.2 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $1.32 to $1.34. Fiscal 2027 revenue guidance of $72.2 billion to $73.4 billion and EPS of $5.05 to $5.11 also exceeded analyst expectations. Cisco Forecasts Upbeat Annual Revenue
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts raised their price targets, including Wells Fargo to $150, Rosenblatt to $165, UBS to $138 and Truist to $140, maintaining bullish ratings despite the market reaction. Analysts Raise Forecasts on Cisco
• Neutral Sentiment: Cisco declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, payable October 21 to shareholders of record October 2.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that AI-related growth could pressure profitability. Analysts highlighted squeezed gross margins and questioned whether Cisco’s AI acceleration can justify its premium valuation. Cisco Stock Falls on Margin Concerns
• Negative Sentiment: The earnings beat and guidance apparently did not clear the market’s high bar. Some analysts described the outlook as conservative relative to current demand, while services revenue reportedly missed expectations, intensifying skepticism about longer-term growth.

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.