Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO – Get Rating) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totalling 39,240,000 shares, an increase of 5.8% from the July 31st total of 37,080,000 shares. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 21,460,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days.
Insider Activity at Cisco Systems
In other Cisco Systems news, SVP Prat Bhatt sold 3,453 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.39, for a total transaction of $167,090.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 75,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,650,686.77. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Charles Robbins sold 12,716 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.14, for a total transaction of $599,432.24. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 631,374 shares in the company, valued at $29,762,970.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Prat Bhatt sold 3,453 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.39, for a total value of $167,090.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 75,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,650,686.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 37,119 shares of company stock valued at $1,746,628. 0.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Institutional Trading of Cisco Systems
A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cordant Inc. acquired a new position in Cisco Systems during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Evolution Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Advanced Research Investment Solutions LLC grew its position in Cisco Systems by 564.6% in the first quarter. Advanced Research Investment Solutions LLC now owns 545 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co increased its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 68.9% in the second quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 591 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Conrad Siegel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. 71.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Cisco Systems Stock Performance
NASDAQ:CSCO traded down $0.59 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $44.65. 517,965 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,917,284. The stock has a market capitalization of $184.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Cisco Systems has a 52 week low of $40.82 and a 52 week high of $64.29.
Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 17th. The network equipment provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $13.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.78 billion. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 22.91% and a return on equity of 31.12%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.76 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cisco Systems will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Cisco Systems Announces Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 5th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 4th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.90%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of brokerages have issued reports on CSCO. Citigroup raised their price target on Cisco Systems from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 18th. Credit Suisse Group increased their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $65.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 19th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Cisco Systems from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 18th. Finally, Cowen upped their price target on Cisco Systems from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.59.
Cisco Systems Company Profile
Cisco Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells Internet Protocol based networking and other products related to the communications and information technology industry in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, Japan, and China. It provides infrastructure platforms, including networking technologies of switching, routing, wireless, and data center products that are designed to work together to deliver networking capabilities, and transport and/or store data.