Cisco Systems, Inc. is an American multinational digital communications technology corporation that develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, software, telecommunications equipment, and other high-technology services and products. The company specialises in Internet Protocol (IP)-based networking solutions, including routers, switches, wireless systems, security products, and collaboration tools.
Cisco Systems was founded in December 1984 by Leonard Bosack and Sandy Lerner, two Stanford University computer scientists. The founders developed networking technology while working at Stanford to connect the university’s computer systems. The company was named after San Francisco, and its logo represents the Golden Gate Bridge.
Cisco went public in 1990 and by the end of the dot-com bubble in 2000, had a market capitalization of $500 billion, surpassing Microsoft as the world’s most valuable company. The company has grown through strategic acquisitions, including the recent $28 billion acquisition of Splunk in 2024, its largest acquisition to date.
Company Profile
Founded: 1984
Headquarters: San Jose, California
CEO: Chuck Robbins
Ticker: CSCO (NASDAQ)
Employees: ~90,400 (2025)
Cisco is headquartered in San Jose, California with over 15,000 full-time employees at the San Jose campus and surrounding Bay Area. The company operates globally with offices in dozens of countries and serves customers across enterprise, service provider, small business, and public sector markets.
Investment thesis
Cisco represents a foundational investment in global networking infrastructure, serving as the backbone for internet communications worldwide. The company’s dominant position in enterprise networking, with products ranging from routers and switches to security and collaboration solutions, provides stable recurring revenue streams and strong competitive moats.
The company has been undergoing a strategic transformation from a hardware-focused business to a software and services-oriented model. Total subscription revenue reached $27.4 billion in fiscal 2024, representing 51% of total revenue. This shift toward recurring revenue models provides more predictable cash flows and higher margins.
Cisco’s recent acquisition of Splunk positions it well in the growing cybersecurity and data analytics markets. The company is also investing heavily in artificial intelligence infrastructure, with AI Infrastructure orders exceeding $600 million in Q3 2025, demonstrating strong demand for AI-ready networking solutions.
Recent performance analysis
Cisco’s fiscal 2024 revenue was $53.803 billion, a 5.61% decline from 2023, reflecting challenging market conditions and customer inventory normalisation. However, Q4 2024 revenue of $13.6 billion was above the high end of guidance range.
The company has shown resilience through strong profitability metrics, with fiscal 2024 non-GAAP gross margin of 67.5%, the highest in 20 years. Recent quarters have shown improvement, with Q3 2025 revenue of $14.1 billion, up 11% year-over-year.
Cisco has maintained its commitment to shareholder returns, with $3.6 billion returned to stockholders through share buybacks and dividends in Q4 2024. The company has consistently increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years, with quarterly dividend increased to $0.41 per share in Q2 2025.
Investment Considerations
Risk factors: Cyclical nature of enterprise IT spending; intense competition from cloud providers and software-defined networking solutions; potential margin pressure from shift to software/services model; geopolitical tensions affecting international operations; and execution risks from large acquisitions like Splunk.
Growth opportunities: Expansion in AI infrastructure and data center networking; growth in cybersecurity through Splunk integration; increasing demand for hybrid work solutions; 5G network buildouts; and international market expansion, particularly in emerging markets.
Market dynamics: Cisco operates in a mature but essential market where networking infrastructure remains critical to global communications. The company’s strong brand, extensive partner ecosystem, and established customer relationships provide defensive characteristics, while investments in AI, security, and cloud technologies position it for long-term growth despite near-term headwinds from economic uncertainty and changing technology preferences.
