Essex Financial Services Inc. Sells 7,356 Shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

Essex Financial Services Inc. lessened its position in shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) by 9.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 68,774 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock after selling 7,356 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $5,298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Anfield Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Cisco Systems by 248.9% in the fourth quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 485 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the period. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 73.33% of the company’s stock.

Key Cisco Systems News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its price target on Cisco to $135 from $114 and reiterated a Buy rating, citing stronger demand for high-speed optical networking gear tied to AI infrastructure spending. BofA raises Cisco, Ciena targets as AI optics boom accelerates
• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt also lifted its price target on Cisco to $150 from $100 and kept a Buy rating after Cisco’s latest quarterly results, reinforcing optimism around earnings and guidance. Rosenblatt Raises its Price Target on Cisco Systems (CSCO)
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage continues to frame Cisco as a beneficiary of AI-driven networking and security spending, with multiple stories highlighting record results and strong momentum. AI Buildout Fuels Record Results for These Companies
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco joined the EnterpriseClaw AI automation platform alongside NVIDIA, Okta, and OpenAI, reinforcing its security and AI relevance in enterprise workflows. Cisco Joins EnterpriseClaw To Link AI Automation With Security And Valuation Risks
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary pieces are highlighting Cisco as a “throwback” tech stock that still fits into the AI trade, but these articles are mostly market commentary rather than new fundamentals. Dell, Cisco: How ‘throwback’ tech stocks fit into the AI trade
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares under a pre-arranged 10b5-1 plan, which is notable but does not necessarily point to changing fundamentals. SEC filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and media reports continue to note that Cisco has outperformed the broader technology sector, but that view largely reflects recent price strength already in place. Cisco Systems Stock: Is CSCO Outperforming the Technology Sector?

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jeetendra I. Patel sold 7,169 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.28, for a total value of $840,780.32. Following the sale, the insider owned 246,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,937,315.36. The trade was a 2.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 2,761 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.61, for a total transaction of $316,438.21. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 180,877 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,730,312.97. This trade represents a 1.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 51,324 shares of company stock valued at $5,559,834. Company insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Cisco Systems Stock Up 1.5%

Cisco Systems stock opened at $120.42 on Friday. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $62.30 and a fifty-two week high of $121.43. The stock has a market cap of $474.63 billion, a PE ratio of 39.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $93.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $15.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.56 billion. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.14% and a return on equity of 28.44%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. 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. Research analysts predict that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 6th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is currently 54.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CSCO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Cisco Systems from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. HSBC upgraded shares of Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $77.00 to $137.00 in a report on Friday, May 15th. Evercore raised their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $110.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Cisco Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, New Street Research raised their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $82.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $119.09.

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.