Why Analysts See Cisco Going Even Higher After Earnings

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By Chris Lange Updated Published
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Why Analysts See Cisco Going Even Higher After Earnings

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Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) reported fiscal third-quarter financial results after the markets closed on Wednesday. The company had incredible earnings and investors were thrilled. As a result, analysts are seeing this stock going even higher.

24/7 Wall St. has included some highlights from the earnings report, as well as what analysts are saying about Cisco after the fact.

The company said it had $0.57 in earnings per share (EPS) on $12 billion in revenue. That compares to consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters of $0.55 in EPS on revenue of $11.97 billion. In the same period of last year, Cisco posted EPS of $0.54 and $12.14 billion in revenue.

Deferred revenue for the quarter was $15.3 billion, up 8% in total from last year, with deferred product revenue up 9%, driven largely by subscription-based and software offerings, and deferred service revenue up 7%.

In terms of the outlook for the fiscal fourth quarter, the company expects to have EPS in the range of $0.59 to $0.61 and a gross margin in the range of 63% to 64%. The consensus estimates for the quarter call for $0.58 in EPS on $12.42 billion in revenue.
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The company saw its stock rise after the networking giant beat earnings and managed to give a positive (or better than negative) update about China concerns.

Analysts weighed in on the stock:

  • Merrill Lynch reiterated a Neutral rating with a $30 price objective.
  • Barclays has an Overweight rating and raised its price target to $31 from $29.
  • Cowen has an Outperform rating and raised its price target from $37 to $39.
  • Jefferies has a Buy rating and raised its price target to $30.75 from $27.50.
  • RBC has an Outperform rating and raised its price target price to $33 from $31.
  • BMO has an Outperform rating and raised its price target from $30 to $32.
  • Credit Suisse has an Underperform rating and raised its target to $24 from $22.
  • Deutsche Bank raised its price target to $35 from $33.
  • FBN Securities has an Outperform rating and raised its price target to $32.
  • MKM has a Neutral rating and raised its price target from $28 to $30.
  • Raymond James has an Outperform rating and raised its price target to $31 from $28.
  • UBS has a Buy rating and raised its price target price to $30.
  • Wunderlich raised its price target to $27 from $24.

Shares of Cisco ended the week at $27.97. The stock has a consensus analyst price target of $30.96 and a 52-week trading range of $22.46 to $29.62.

Photo of Chris Lange
About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.

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