Cisco Systems Stock Forecast: Trending StrongBuy Among Analysts

Cisco Systems (CSCO) stock has risen 10.5% over the past week, 23.3% in the last month, and an impressive 70.0% over the past year. Wall Street’s analysts are firmly bullish, with a StrongBuy consensus and forecasting only a modest pullback from the current $101.87 level toward an average 12‑month price target of $99.00.

Among the most vocal bulls is Tal Liani of BofA, who reiterated his Buy rating on 5/14/2026 and raised his price objective to $114.00, implying meaningful upside from recent levels. Liani is a solidly ranked analyst, placing 978 out of 12,188 on TipRanks, with a 56.46% success rate and an average return of 9.50% per rating.

Liani argues that Cisco is riding a powerful networking cycle that is broadening beyond the cloud, with both cloud and non‑cloud customers fueling demand. Third‑quarter revenue grew 12% year over year versus the Street’s 10% expectation, and networking revenue jumped 25%, underscoring the strength of the core business.

Looking ahead, Cisco guided for fourth‑quarter revenue growth of 14.5%, nearly twice the Street’s 7.8% forecast, supported by robust AI demand and enterprise spending. AI revenues are expected to grow fourfold to about $4 billion in 2026, while product orders excluding AI accelerated to 19% growth, driven by price increases, campus refresh projects, and enterprise AI readiness.

Liani notes that Cisco’s supply chain is stable and margins steady at around 66%, helped by higher pricing and product re‑engineering, although the richer EV/FCF multiple near 23x is a valuation risk. Still, he views the AI cycle as durable, expects security and Splunk to re‑accelerate into 2027, and believes sustained strong orders and accelerating revenue can keep investors interested in Cisco’s story. Never miss a stock rating. Find all the latest ratings on TipRanks’ Top Wall Street Analysts page.