Cisco Lays Off Thousands

Investing

Published: February 15, 2024 6:30 am

The huge router company Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) said it would lay off over 4,200 people, about 5% of its staff. It joins other large tech firms that fired people late last year and early in 2024. Tech layoffs this year total about 35,000 people. “Efficiency” is often the reason, but in the case of Cisco, it is poor financial results. (This is the worst job in America according to data.)

Cisco’s results for the latest reported quarter were short of Wall Street’s expectations. Chief Executive Officer Chuck Robbins said, “Customers are pushing things out and putting a bit more scrutiny on them.” However he wanted to state this, Cisco is driving in reverse.

Company revenue declined from $13.6 billion in the quarter last year to $12.8 billion. Net income dropped from $2.8 billion to $2.6 billion. Cisco has not completed its $28 billion acquisition of security software maker Splunk.

Cisco forecasts revenue of $12.1 billion to $12.3 billion for the current quarter. It expects earnings of $0.84 to $0.86 per share. For the full fiscal year, it anticipates revenue of $51.5 billion to $52.5 billion and per-share earnings in a range of $3.68 to $3.74.

In the past year, Cisco shares are up 5% while the S&P 500 is 21% higher. By contrast, Microsoft’s shares are up 51% for the same period.

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