Cisco designs and sells networking hardware, software, and services that help organizations connect, protect, and manage data. Its products include networking gear, security solutions, cloud services, and collaboration tools like Webex to support hybrid work. Cisco differentiates itself with a broad, integrated stack—routing and switching, security, cloud, and collaboration—that works together at scale. Its goal is to help customers securely connect people, devices, and applications, enabling reliable communication and digital transformation across enterprises of all sizes.
Company Size
10,001+
Company Stage
IPO
Headquarters
San Jose, California
Founded
1984
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Cisco announced new AI-powered collaboration tools at WebexOne 2026 in Austin, Texas. The company is integrating AI agents into Webex to work alongside human teams, with capabilities including Claude Managed Agents for analysis and content generation. The updates encompass three areas: workspace collaboration, physical workplace management, and customer experience. Webex will support AI agents that can be invited into meetings and execute multi-step tasks across applications. The platform will integrate with OpenAI's dots and implement enterprise security controls. Cisco introduced RoomOS 27 for collaboration devices, featuring native support for Google Meet alongside existing platforms. The company also unveiled Dialog, an AI system designed to maintain continuous customer relationships across interactions. The new Cisco Ceiling Speaker Pro completes the company's IP-connected meeting space ecosystem. All updates build on Cisco's unified foundation combining networking, security, and workplace intelligence.
Quantum XChange has joined the Cisco Networking App Marketplace as a Cisco Technology Partner. The company's Phio TX-EM application is now the first FIPS-validated post-quantum cryptography solution available in the Marketplace. Phio TX-EM is a containerised key management application that runs on Cisco routers and switches without requiring additional hardware or causing network downtime. The software delivers quantum-safe encryption to protect against "Harvest Now, Decrypt Later" attacks, where adversaries collect encrypted data now to decrypt it later using quantum computers. The application supports multi-algorithm cryptography and allows organisations to update encryption algorithms without router reconfiguration or network disruption. It runs natively on Cisco SKIP-enabled devices, including Catalyst 8000 Series products and Nexus switches. Phio TX-EM has received FIPS 140-3 Level 2 and FIPS 203 validation. The solution is designed for enterprise networks and supports continuous key rotation across distributed, multi-site architectures.
Cisco Systems investors should focus on one key metric: growth outside AI infrastructure, which management expects to reach about 10% in fiscal 2027. Whilst AI infrastructure generates headlines, it represents only 6% of Cisco's revenue, with the remainder coming from networking and security products sold to enterprises and telecoms. The company's product orders rose 35% year-on-year in fiscal Q4 2026, with Wi-Fi 7 accounting for over half of wireless orders. Management forecasts fiscal 2027 revenue of $72.2 billion to $73.4 billion, with $7.5 billion from AI infrastructure. However, challenges loom. Comparisons become tougher in the second half of fiscal 2027, gross margins face pressure from increased hardware shipments, and price increases contributed about 5 percentage points to recent revenue growth. The stock trades at 31.8 times earnings, above the S&P 500's 21.9 multiple, leaving little margin for error.
Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins has warned employees uncomfortable with rapid change that "nothing's going to feel good right now" as AI transforms the workplace. Speaking to Inc., Robbins said workers "have no choice but to at least keep up" with the pace of technological change driven by industry leaders. The head of the $415 billion company argues firms should view AI as an "innovation enhancement play" rather than a cost-reduction tool, enabling companies to deliver more with existing staff rather than cutting headcount. However, Cisco cut around 4,000 jobs earlier this year during a restructuring towards AI. Robbins noted that even AI leaders like Anthropic's Dario Amodei and OpenAI's Sam Altman have called for slower model development. Goldman Sachs economists estimate AI has eliminated approximately 16,000 net jobs monthly over the past year.
Cisco Systems trades at $106 per share, or 24.6 times its fiscal 2026 non-GAAP earnings per share of $4.33. However, based on fiscal 2027 guidance and analyst forecasts, the valuation drops to 20.6 times earnings, with the company guiding non-GAAP earnings of $5.05 to $5.11 per share for that period. The company's fastest-growing segment is AI infrastructure for hyperscalers, which generated $9.3 billion in orders during fiscal 2026, 4.5 times the previous year's total. Management projects this business to deliver $7.5 billion in revenue for fiscal 2027. Cisco expects non-GAAP operating margins to reach approximately 35% in fiscal 2027, a company record. The company's remaining business is projected to grow around 10% in fiscal 2027, with campus networking product orders increasing 20% year-over-year in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026.