Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Shares Down 2.3% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) were down 2.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $81.14 and last traded at $81.16. Approximately 39,583,757 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 89% from the average daily volume of 20,994,371 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.11.

Cisco Systems News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Evercore ISI sharply raised its price target on CSCO to $175 from $100 and kept an “outperform” rating — a very bullish read on long‑term upside that can drive investor re‑rating and institutional interest. Evercore Raises Price Target to $175
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity: investors bought roughly 89,631 call options (about 27% above normal daily call volume), indicating short‑term bullish positioning and speculative interest in further upside.
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco presented at its second annual AI Summit (prepared remarks published), reinforcing product roadmaps around AI networking and go‑to‑market execution — important for revenue cadence and investor confidence. AI Summit Remarks Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco is linking its AI networking push to renewable‑powered data centers, a strategic positioning that targets large, energy‑aware AI customers and supports long‑term demand for high‑margin networking and infrastructure products. Cisco Ties AI Networking to Renewable Data Centers
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary notes Cisco recently hit new all‑time highs and prompts buy/sell debate — momentum has attracted attention from momentum and value investors alike. Cisco Hits New All‑Time Highs
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest data shows zero shares — likely a data or reporting anomaly; it does not indicate a material short position change and should be treated cautiously.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analyst/coverage stories and summaries (Zacks, MSN) provide context on broker sentiment and valuation but contain mixed views that mostly reiterate recent upgrades and strategy commentary. Zacks Analyst Coverage Summary MSN Analyst Roundup

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on CSCO shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Melius Research boosted their price target on Cisco Systems from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on Cisco Systems from $80.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, November 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.38.

Cisco Systems Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $320.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.51, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business’s 50 day moving average is $76.97 and its 200-day moving average is $72.34.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.02. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 27.29% and a net margin of 18.38%.The firm had revenue of $14.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Cisco Systems has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.080-4.140 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.010-1.030 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is presently 61.65%.

Insider Transactions at Cisco Systems

In other news, EVP Thimaya K. Subaiya sold 56,038 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.33, for a total value of $4,389,456.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 179,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,082,167.40. This represents a 23.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 164,584 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.85, for a total transaction of $12,812,864.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 196,738 shares in the company, valued at $15,316,053.30. This trade represents a 45.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,044,865 shares of company stock valued at $81,397,635. 0.01% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Cisco Systems by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 398,943,293 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $30,730,602,000 after purchasing an additional 4,049,893 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 0.6% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 194,695,250 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $13,507,956,000 after purchasing an additional 1,067,872 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 1.2% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 99,252,395 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $6,864,058,000 after buying an additional 1,157,704 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Cisco Systems in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,816,825,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Cisco Systems by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 53,612,720 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $3,668,182,000 after buying an additional 5,081,469 shares during the period. 73.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.