CiscoCSCOCOMMENTJan 24, 2018Stock price when the opinion was issued
As of Sep 04, 2026. Market Open.
Like Apple it was sort of a sleeper last year. It sells processes and analogue chips, very different than GPU's. Is involved in networking products and services. The AI stack explosion needed their products and technology. It is fully priced according to analysts' price targets.
Kudos on that choice, because it's not been a market darling (since the dot-com bubble). Riding coattails of stronger players in the space, catching the halo effect. The old adage: "No one ever went broke taking a profit" -- good risk management.
Prefers, and owns, ANET.
Part of IT infrastructure, but $27B acquisition of Splunk really helped drive security business. Finally hit a new high (previous high was March 27, 2000). Phenomenal allocator of capital. Compelling buy. Every year, buys back stock and raises dividend.
Finally growing revenues again, he's looking for mid-high single-digit revenue growth. AI will bring a much higher recurring revenue stream. Its solutions are so embedded in businesses, he's not worried about clients trying to go it alone with AI.
Has owned this since 2012. There was a lot of fear on their switches and networking being old technology and their business was going to get destroyed. However, Cisco has managed this before. They take their installed base and then pivot to where the industry is going. Instead of selling switches and routers to IT people, they do consulting as to what is actually needed. They are selling a solution, as opposed to just a piece of hardware. Has done a good job on holding growth margins above 60%. The valuation is still attractive.