Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Shares Down 4.5% – Should You Sell?

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)’s stock price traded down 4.5% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $110.22 and last traded at $111.77. 22,672,062 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 5% from the average session volume of 23,959,504 shares. The stock had previously closed at $117.09.

Key Headlines Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary remain upbeat on Cisco’s growth outlook, citing rising AI-related orders, networking demand, cybersecurity momentum, and improved earnings visibility, with one recent note saying the stock still has room to rise after a 52% year-to-date gain. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco is also benefiting from AI and security positioning, including a new Webex Contact Center partnership with SuccessKPI that expands its cloud contact-center offering and supports its broader AI software strategy. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several recent reports frame Cisco as a beneficiary of the ongoing AI infrastructure buildout and stronger cybersecurity spending, reinforcing the view that demand trends remain favorable for the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage and commentary pieces continue to highlight Cisco’s valuation and AI optionality, but these are more long-term framing pieces than immediate stock catalysts. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term trading pressure appears to be driven by profit-taking after a big run, with investors likely locking in gains following Cisco’s strong earnings report and AI-related optimism. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: That same update noted tariff-related margin pressure, restructuring charges of up to $1 billion, and heavy insider selling over the past six months, which may be adding to investor caution. Article Title

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CSCO shares. Truist Financial started coverage on Cisco Systems in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective on the stock. Argus upped their price target on Cisco Systems from $100.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Cisco Systems from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Cisco Systems from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Cisco Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cisco Systems has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.14.

Cisco Systems Trading Down 4.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.92. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $116.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $440.53 billion, a PE ratio of 36.29, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.02.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.03. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 28.44% and a net margin of 20.14%.The firm had revenue of $15.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. Cisco Systems’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Cisco Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 6th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In related news, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 2,607 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.12, for a total transaction of $315,759.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 172,727 shares in the company, valued at $20,920,694.24. The trade was a 1.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 6,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.31, for a total value of $772,603.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 177,223 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,790,030.13. This trade represents a 3.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 ninety days, insiders have sold 47,650 shares of company stock worth $5,668,823. 0.01% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 198,549 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $13,905,000 after purchasing an additional 26,455 shares during the period. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 101.8% in the fourth quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 107,306 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $8,266,000 after acquiring an additional 54,141 shares in the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. boosted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 47.1% in the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 200,341 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $15,432,000 after purchasing an additional 64,144 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in Cisco Systems by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 4,311,098 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $332,084,000 after purchasing an additional 275,456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,873,274 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $375,388,000 after purchasing an additional 151,395 shares in the last quarter. 73.33% of the stock is currently 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.