Cisco Stock Rides AI Growth Wave to Fresh Highs
Cisco Systems Inc.'s stock has been trading around $112 in late August 2026, following an earnings beat and higher guidance for FY 2027. The company reported Q4 2026 revenue of $17.3 billion, surpassing analyst estimates by roughly 2.8%, and non-GAAP EPS came in at $1.22, a $0.05 or 4.3% upside to the consensus forecast.
A key driver of the earnings beat was AI infrastructure orders, which reached $4 billion in Q4 alone, exceeding prior guidance by $300 million. Full-year AI orders totaled $9.3 billion, up from an earlier estimate of $9.0 billion. This acceleration in demand is a testament to Cisco's position as a critical enabler of next-generation compute and data-center architectures.
The company's guidance for FY 2027 reflects this momentum, with revenue projected between $72.2 billion and $73.4 billion, representing year-over-year growth of 14.1% to 16.0%. Non-GAAP EPS is guided to a range of $5.05 to $5.11.
Cisco's strong track record of capital returns and dividend payments also supports its valuation. The company returned $12.7 billion to shareholders in FY 2026, with $6.6 billion going towards dividends and $6.1 billion allocated to share repurchases. This combination of growth, income, and defensive attributes underpins the Moderate Buy consensus view on the stock.