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Cisco Systems (CSCO) Laps the Stock Market: Here's Why

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Cisco Systems (CSCO - Free Report) closed at $78.84 in the latest trading session, marking a +1.53% move from the prior day. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 1.15% gain on the day. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 1.38%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 1.38%.

Shares of the seller of routers, switches, software and services have depreciated by 1.96% over the course of the past month, outperforming the Computer and Technology sector's loss of 5.27%, and the S&P 500's loss of 5.69%.

The upcoming earnings release of Cisco Systems will be of great interest to investors. On that day, Cisco Systems is projected to report earnings of $1.03 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 7.29%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $15.52 billion, up 9.69% from the prior-year quarter.

Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $4.14 per share and revenue of $61.33 billion, indicating changes of +8.66% and +8.25%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Cisco Systems. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. Therefore, positive revisions in estimates convey analysts' confidence in the business performance and profit potential.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed an unchanged state. Currently, Cisco Systems is carrying a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

With respect to valuation, Cisco Systems is currently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 18.76. This represents a premium compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 16.81.

Also, we should mention that CSCO has a PEG ratio of 2.4. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Computer - Networking industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.57 as trading concluded yesterday.

The Computer - Networking industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 91, putting it in the top 38% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.

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