BofA sees higher gold prices, likely to hit $5,000/oz in 2026
Investing.com - Goldman Sachs has reiterated its Neutral rating and $75.00 price target on Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) following the company’s first-quarter fiscal 2026 earnings report. The networking giant, currently trading near its 52-week high at $73.96, appears slightly overvalued according to InvestingPro analysis, despite boasting a perfect Piotroski Score of 9 - indicating exceptional financial strength.
Cisco reported earnings per share of $1.00, exceeding Goldman Sachs’ estimate of $0.99 and the company’s guidance range of $0.97-$0.99, driven primarily by strong performance in its Networking segment, which grew 15% year-over-year. This outperformance contributes to Cisco’s impressive 28.15% year-to-date price return, significantly outpacing its 5.3% overall revenue growth for the last twelve months.
The networking giant recognized $1.3 billion in artificial intelligence orders from hyperscalers during the quarter and expects hyperscale AI orders to reach at least $4 billion in fiscal 2026, more than double the fiscal 2025 level, with hyperscaler AI revenue projected to hit at least $3 billion compared to approximately $1 billion in fiscal 2025. With a market capitalization of $291.46 billion, Cisco trades at a P/E ratio of 28.82, which InvestingPro identifies as high relative to its near-term earnings growth. Investors seeking deeper insights into Cisco’s AI-driven growth potential can access comprehensive Pro Research Reports covering what really matters for smarter investment decisions.
Cisco’s Security segment underperformed with a 2% year-over-year decline, compared to Goldman Sachs’ estimate of 8% growth, attributed to a mix shift in Splunk from on-premise to cloud solutions affecting revenue recognition timing, though this was partially offset by mid-teens growth in next-generation firewall products. Despite this segment’s challenges, Cisco maintains a solid overall financial health score of 2.51 (rated "GOOD" by InvestingPro), with particularly strong scores in profitability (3.74) and price momentum (3.32).
The company raised its fiscal year outlook to $60.2-$61 billion in revenue, up from its previous guidance of $59-$60 billion, citing continued strength in its networking business and positioning for a multi-year campus networking refresh cycle as a sizable installed base of pre-Cat9k switches reaches end of support. Income-focused investors may appreciate Cisco’s 2.22% dividend yield, backed by 15 consecutive years of dividend increases. InvestingPro offers 10+ additional insights on Cisco, including detailed valuation metrics and growth projections that help investors make more informed decisions about this communications equipment leader.
In other recent news, Cisco Systems Inc. reported its fiscal first-quarter results for 2026, surpassing earnings expectations. The company achieved earnings per share of $1, which was higher than the forecasted $0.98, and reported revenue of $14.9 billion, exceeding the anticipated $14.77 billion. Additionally, BofA Securities raised its price target for Cisco to $95 from $85, emphasizing strong orders for AI networking and the company’s ambitious $3 billion AI revenue target for fiscal year 2026. Morgan Stanley also increased its price target to $82 from $77, noting better-than-expected performance in key growth areas, particularly in artificial intelligence. KeyBanc followed suit by raising its price target to $87 from $77, highlighting Cisco’s robust networking segment that outperformed expectations. These developments reflect a positive outlook from analysts on Cisco’s future performance and growth potential.
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