Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Shares Climb 3% – Time to Buy?

Posted by George Bondi on Oct 9th, 2026

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO – Get Free Report) shares shot up 3% on Friday. The company traded as high as $118.65 and last traded at $118.39. Approximately 11,323,404 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 50% from the average session volume of 22,441,438 shares. The stock had previously closed at $114.89.

Cisco Systems News Roundup

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

Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlight Cisco’s positioning as a leader in AI cloud networking. Demand from hyperscalers and AI-related infrastructure spending could support sustained revenue growth, while management’s fiscal 2027 guidance reinforces the company’s growth outlook. Buy Cisco Systems as Leader of the AI Cloud Networking Space for 2027
Positive Sentiment: Cisco’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with revenue rising 17.6% year over year to $17.25 billion and earnings of $1.22 per share versus the $1.17 consensus estimate. This marked the company’s fifth consecutive earnings beat and has supported momentum in the stock. Cisco Could Be Entering a New Growth Phase
Positive Sentiment: New agentic AI products across Webex, workplace automation and customer experience, along with Google Meet compatibility and RoomOS 27, expand Cisco’s software and collaboration opportunity. A post-quantum security application also strengthens its cybersecurity offering. Cisco unveils agentic AI tools
Positive Sentiment: The average brokerage recommendation remains favorable, providing additional support for investor sentiment, although analyst ratings can be biased toward optimistic recommendations. Is Cisco a Buy as Wall Street Analysts Look Optimistic?
Neutral Sentiment: Product revenue surged to $13.459 billion from $10.886 billion, driving the quarterly acceleration. However, services revenue was nearly flat at $3.793 billion versus $3.787 billion, meaning current growth is concentrated in hardware and AI infrastructure rather than recurring services. Cisco’s Product Sales Surged. Why Were Services Almost Flat?
Negative Sentiment: After a strong year-to-date rally, recent momentum cooled and Cisco briefly underperformed the broader market. Investors are questioning whether the AI opportunity is already reflected in the valuation, with a price-to-earnings ratio above 35. Cisco Systems Dropped, So What Is Behind the Latest Attention?
Negative Sentiment: Some investors reacted cautiously to Webex agent functionality and collaboration updates, while the limited services growth raises questions about the durability and quality of Cisco’s revenue expansion. Cisco Stocks Slip as Webex Agents Keep Working After Calls

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Cisco Systems from $121.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Cisco Systems from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $132.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $132.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cisco Systems currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.52.

View Our Latest Analysis on Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems Trading Up 3.0%

The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a market cap of $466.76 billion, a PE ratio of 35.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $112.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.70.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.05. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 30.16% and a net margin of 20.95%.The business had revenue of $17.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. The business’s quarterly 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. Analysts anticipate that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 2nd. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is 50.30%.

Insider Transactions at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, EVP Thimaya Subaiya sold 5,832 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.47, for a total value of $650,093.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 128,382 shares in the company, valued at $14,310,741.54. This trade represents a 4.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Deborah Stahlkopf sold 6,487 shares of Cisco Systems 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 167,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,638,447.48. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 44,869 shares of company stock valued at $5,005,620 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSCO. Cozad Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,203 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $2,033,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Cisco Systems by 3.9% during the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,413 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $283,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Green Ridge Wealth Planning LLC increased its position in Cisco Systems by 1.5% in the third quarter. Green Ridge Wealth Planning LLC now owns 6,017 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. August Group Capital Ltd raised its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 2.0% in the second quarter. August Group Capital Ltd now owns 4,723 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $555,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Insights Inc. raised its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 1.5% in the first quarter. Financial Insights Inc. now owns 6,220 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $483,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. 73.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Cisco Systems

(Get Free Report)

Cisco Systems, Inc is a global technology company that develops networking, cybersecurity, collaboration, observability and data center solutions. Its products and services help businesses, governments, educational institutions and other organizations connect users and devices, manage infrastructure, protect digital environments and support cloud-based operations.

Cisco’s portfolio includes routers and switches, wireless networking equipment, network management software, firewalls, identity and access tools, endpoint security products, collaboration applications and observability platforms.