CSCO
Cisco
$119.96
▼ 0.8%Updated Aug 7, 11:30 AM ET
CSCO at a glance — five pillars scored 0–100 from real filed financials.
Overall: Favorable · 62/100. A wider, greener shape means more pillars look healthy. Dividends scores 0 when a company pays none — that is a choice, not a flaw.
▲ Up 81.6% over the last 12 months
Market Cap
$444.16B
P/E
39.74x
Forward P/E (est.)
32.31x
ROE
25.1%
Revenue Growth
9.2%
EPS Growth
23.0%
Profit Margin
19.7%
FCF Yield
3.1%
Debt / Equity
0.6x
ROIC
13.0%
Interest Coverage
27.54x
Current Ratio
0.92x
Dividend Yield
1.4%
Implied Growth (rev. DCF)
5.8%
Rating Score
62/100
Cisco (CSCO) is a mega-cap company in the Communications Equipment industry, part of the Information Technology sector of the S&P 500, with a market value around $444.16B.
In its latest reported year it generated about $56.65B in revenue and $10.18B in net profit.
Our model rates CSCO Favorable (62/100) on growth, profitability, financial health, and valuation. The summary below is built from its filed financials and current ratios and refreshes automatically.
Evidence of durable competitive advantage in the filed financials (9 years of history).
The filed history looks like a business competitors struggle to attack: high and steady margins, revenue that grows through cycles, and strong returns on capital.
64.1% average over the last 3 years
±1.0 pts around 63.5% across 9 years
grew in 6 of the last 8 year-over-year periods
positive in 9 of 9 years
13.0% latest fiscal year
A moat can't be proven by numbers alone — this scores the evidence a durable advantage leaves behind (pricing power, consistency, returns on capital), computed the same way for every stock. Pair it with the business overview before concluding anything.
Technical analysis reads price and volume to judge momentum and timing. It complements the fundamentals above — it does not replace them. Here is what CSCO's chart says today, with each tool explained.
Trend — moving averages. A moving average is the average closing price over a window, which smooths out daily noise. CSCO trades near $119.96, above its 50-day average ($111.02) and 200-day average ($84.91). Price above both averages, with the shorter one above the longer, is the textbook definition of an uptrend — momentum favours buyers.
Momentum — RSI. The Relative Strength Index runs 0–100 and measures how strong recent gains are versus losses. Above 70 is "overbought", below 30 "oversold". At 32 it is in neutral territory — neither stretched nor washed out.
MACD. MACD compares two moving averages to flag shifts in momentum. Its histogram is currently negative — short-term momentum is fading.
Volatility — ATR. Average True Range is the typical daily move. CSCO's is $3.45 (~2.9% of price), so swings of about that size each day are normal — handy for setting a stop that isn't too tight.
Support & resistance. Over the last month CSCO found buyers near $111.90 (support) and sellers near $130.37 (resistance); its 52-week range is $65.75–$130.37. A decisive break beyond either edge often marks the next move.
Volume. The latest session traded 0.9× the 20-day average — about normal. Rising volume on up-days suggests real buying; on down-days, real selling.
Educational information to help you read a chart — not a recommendation or a forecast. It updates daily as the price and indicators change.
4Y CAGR
3.3%
Revenue moved from $48.01B in 2017 to $56.65B in 2025, a 2.1% compound annual growth rate. The most recent year grew a steady 9.2% year over year. Slower, mature growth is common for established businesses.
Gross Margin
64.9%
Operating Margin
20.8%
Net Margin
18.0%
ROE
25.1%
Cisco keeps about 19.7% of each sales dollar as net profit, with a 64.9% gross margin and 20.8% operating margin. Return on equity is 25.1% and return on invested capital about 13.0%. Margins this wide usually signal pricing power or a cost advantage.
Total Debt
$22.87B
Net Debt
$15.79B
Net Debt / EBITDA
1.34x
Debt / Equity
0.6x
Leverage: debt-to-equity is 0.6x, and operating profit covers interest about 27.5x, with a current ratio of 0.9x. That is a moderate, manageable debt load for most businesses. It carries roughly $22.87B of total debt against $7.08B of cash.
Operating CF
$14.19B
Free Cash Flow
$13.29B
FCF Margin
23.5%
In the latest year Cisco produced about $14.19B of operating cash flow and $13.29B of free cash flow after capital spending. That is a free-cash-flow yield of about 3.1% on today's price. Cash flow is what ultimately pays shareholders, so it is worth tracking over time.
Can the payout survive a bad year? Scored from filed cash flow, earnings coverage, and the raise/cut record.
The payout is comfortably covered by cash the business actually generates, with a raise habit behind it.
Dividend yield
1.4%
Per share (latest FY)
$1.62
Total paid (latest FY)
$6.44B
History on record
9 years
dividend uses 48% of free cash flow
63% of net income paid out
total dividends increased 8 years in a row
no cuts in the last 9 years on record
Coverage uses the latest fiscal year as filed with the SEC; the streak counts total dollars paid (per-share figures can carry split artifacts). Educational information, not income advice.
P/E
39.74x
P/S
8.36x
P/B
5.76x
EV / EBITDA
—
CSCO trades at 39.7x trailing earnings (about 32.3x on estimated forward earnings), 8.4x sales, and 5.8x book value. Reverse-engineering today's price implies the market expects roughly 5.8% long-term free-cash-flow growth. That is a premium multiple that needs growth to justify it.
A two-stage discounted cash flow on real SEC-filed free cash flow — the intrinsic-value anchor professional analysts triangulate from.
DCF fair value / share
$77.55
Current price
$119.96
Starting FCF (latest 10-K)
$13.29B
Growth, years 1–5
9.2%
Fade to terminal, years 6–10
2.5%
Discount rate
9.0%
Cash flows grow at the stage-1 rate (trailing revenue growth, capped at 20%) for five years, fade to 2.5% by year 10, and continue at that rate forever (Gordon terminal value), all discounted at 9.0%. Small changes in assumptions move the result a lot — treat this as one reference point, not a target price. Educational only, not investment advice.
Where CSCO sits versus its Information Technology sector peers in the S&P 500.
Bands show the middle half (25th–75th percentile) of the 98 Information Technology companies in the S&P 500 — the peer-relative anchor professional comps analysis uses. Context only — not investment advice.
How CSCO stacks up against its Information Technology peers — valuation, profitability, and growth versus the sector median.
In the Information Technology sector (230 S&P 500 companies), CSCO ranks #40 of 230 by our overall rating. It trades at roughly in line versus the sector on earnings (39.7x P/E vs. 38.9x median) with a higher return on equity (25.1% vs. 17.5%) and slower revenue growth (9.2% vs. 17.7%).
P/E vs sector
39.7x
median 38.9x
ROE vs sector
25.1%
median 17.5%
Growth vs sector
9.2%
median 17.7%
Sector rank
#40
of 230 by rating
Valuation vs. quality map
The sweet spot is upper-left: more profitable (higher ROE) for a lower P/E. Dashed lines mark the sector median.
Peers are the closest Information Technology companies by sub-industry and size. Sector median is across all 230 S&P 500 names in the sector. Educational, not a recommendation.
Project revenue → earnings → price. Edit the assumptions to build your own case.
2030 price target (Base Case)
$0.00 – $0.00
vs. $119.96 today · expected CAGR -3% – 7%
| Metric | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $61.75B | $67.31B | $73.37B | $79.97B | $87.17B |
| Net income | $11.12B | $12.12B | $13.21B | $14.39B | $15.69B |
| EPS | $3.00 | $3.27 | $3.57 | $3.89 | $4.24 |
| Share price (low) | $72.05 | $78.54 | $85.60 | $93.31 | $101.71 |
| Share price (high) | $120.08 | $130.89 | $142.67 | $155.51 | $169.51 |
| CAGR (low–high) | -40% / 0% | -19% / 4% | -11% / 6% | -6% / 7% | -3% / 7% |
Educational model on sample fundamentals — not a forecast or investment advice. Outputs are only as good as your assumptions.
The case for CSCO:
- High net margins (19.7%) point to pricing power or efficiency.
- Strong return on equity (25.1%) shows capital is put to work well.
- Our model's overall read is Favorable (62/100).
The case against CSCO:
- Like any single stock, it is exposed to competition, the economic cycle, and shifts in its end markets.
Valuation risk — at 39.7x earnings, disappointing results could compress the multiple.
Market risk — sector rotation, the economic cycle, and broad sentiment move the stock regardless of fundamentals.
On balance, the fundamentals screen favourably: Cisco is a mega-cap information technology business growing at a mature pace, with solid profitability, and a sound balance sheet. It trades at 39.7x earnings, which our model scores Favorable (62/100). Weigh this against your own goals and time horizon — this is educational information, not a recommendation.
Analyst Ratings
What 33 Wall Street analysts covering CSCO recommend (August 2026). Consensus is a useful sanity check — not a substitute for your own homework.
Latest SEC Filings
CSCO's most recent filings, straight from SEC EDGAR. Annual and quarterly reports are the deep dives; 8-Ks flag material events the moment they happen.
In the Idea Lab
CSCO — frequently asked questions
Is CSCO a good stock to buy?
We don't give buy or sell advice. Our model rates Cisco Favorable (62/100) based on its growth, profitability, financial health, and valuation — use that as a research starting point and make your own decision.
What is CSCO's rating on The Stocks School?
Cisco currently scores 62/100 (Favorable) on our transparent model, which weighs real fundamentals: growth, margins, returns on capital, balance-sheet strength, and valuation.
How our ratings work →Where does CSCO's data come from?
Live price data plus real fundamentals and 5-year financials pulled directly from Cisco's SEC filings — refreshed automatically, not hand-entered.
How is the 5-year projection for CSCO calculated?
It's a scenario model: it grows revenue at an assumed rate, applies a profit margin and a valuation multiple, and shows the resulting share-price range. The assumptions are yours to change — it's a tool for thinking, not a prediction.
Is this CSCO analysis financial advice?
No. Everything on this page is educational research, not financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell CSCO. Always do your own research and consider a licensed professional.
Data notice. Fundamentals and financial statements are sourced from company filings (SEC EDGAR) and market-data providers; prices and market caps refresh on trading days and may be delayed. Ratings, projections, technical signals, and written summaries are model- or rule-generated for education and may simplify or lag the latest filings.
Not advice. Nothing on this page is investment advice or a recommendation to buy, hold, or sell any security. Do your own research and consult a licensed financial professional before investing.