XML Financial LLC Trims Position in Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

XML Financial LLC lowered its holdings in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) by 4.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 121,978 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock after selling 5,819 shares during the period. Cisco Systems accounts for 1.0% of XML Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. XML Financial LLC’s holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $14,328,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in Cisco Systems during the second quarter worth about $285,000. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. grew its holdings in Cisco Systems by 21.5% in the 2nd quarter. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. now owns 5,998 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $705,000 after buying an additional 1,060 shares during the period. Chesapeake Wealth Management grew its holdings in Cisco Systems by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 24,775 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,910,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the period. Nan Shan Life Insurance Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 79.8% during the 2nd quarter. Nan Shan Life Insurance Co. Ltd. now owns 193,106 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $22,682,000 after acquiring an additional 85,704 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lone Peak Global Investors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Lone Peak Global Investors LLC now owns 319,224 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $37,496,000 after acquiring an additional 18,182 shares during the period. 73.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CSCO shares. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $132.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Citic Securities upped their price objective on Cisco Systems from $90.00 to $130.00 in a report on Friday, May 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, insider Jeetendra I. Patel sold 7,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.57, for a total value of $799,956.90. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 230,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,727,261.01. This trade represents a 3.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 6,487 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.53, for a total value of $723,495.11. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 167,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,638,447.48. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 53,611 shares of company stock worth $6,066,680. Corporate insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank initiated coverage of Cisco Systems with a “Buy” rating and a $135 price target, implying substantial upside from the referenced share price. The endorsement supports the bullish case for Cisco’s networking and AI growth prospects. Tuesday Wall Street analyst research calls
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco, AMD and HUMAIN said AI infrastructure using AMD Instinct MI355X systems and Cisco Silicon One networking is now live in Saudi Arabia. The partners plan additional deployments of up to 250 megawatts beginning in 2027, with a broader ambition of as much as 1 gigawatt by 2030. The projects provide potential long-term demand for Cisco’s AI networking products. AMD, Cisco and HUMAIN expand Saudi Arabia AI infrastructure
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary also highlighted an earlier-than-expected enterprise technology refresh as a potential “second engine” for growth, complementing Cisco’s AI networking opportunity. Cisco’s second growth engine
• Neutral Sentiment: Cisco will meet investors at several September technology and financial conferences. These events could provide updates on enterprise demand, AI networking, margins and guidance, but no new financial outlook was announced. Cisco September investor events
• Negative Sentiment: Cisco disclosed that the China-linked “Fire Ant” group has targeted Cisco IOS XR routers and obtained persistent access to high-value network infrastructure. The espionage campaign raises concerns about customer network security, potential remediation costs and reputational damage to Cisco’s core routing business. Fire Ant router espionage and Cisco investors

Cisco Systems Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:CSCO opened at $109.74 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $432.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.86, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.00. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $66.13 and a 1 year high of $130.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.05. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.95% and a return on equity of 30.16%. The firm had revenue of $17.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. Cisco Systems’s revenue for the quarter 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. Equities analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Investors of record on Friday, October 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 2nd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is presently 50.30%.

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.