Cisco Systems (CSCO) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know

Cisco Systems (CSCO) closed the most recent trading day at $43.21, moving -0.64% from the previous trading session. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.53% loss on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.36%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.94%.

Heading into today, shares of the seller of routers, switches, software and services had lost 8.38% over the past month, lagging the Computer and Technology sector's loss of 1.88% and the S&P 500's loss of 1.47% in that time.

CSCO will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release, which is expected to be February 13, 2019. The company is expected to report EPS of $0.72, up 14.29% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $12.38 billion, up 4.13% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $3.02 per share and revenue of $51.44 billion. These totals would mark changes of +16.15% and +4.27%, respectively, from last year.

Any recent changes to analyst estimates for CSCO should also be noted by investors. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. CSCO is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.

Investors should also note CSCO's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 14.43. For comparison, its industry has an average Forward P/E of 14.62, which means CSCO is trading at a discount to the group.

Meanwhile, CSCO's PEG ratio is currently 2.28. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Computer - Networking industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2.08 as of yesterday's close.

The Computer - Networking industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 108, which puts it in the top 43% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual 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.

Make sure to utilize Zacks. Com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.