Cisco Systems Inc. reports fiscal first-quarter financial results on Wednesday. The following is a summary of key developments and analyst opinion related to the period.
OVERVIEW: As the world's largest maker of computer networking gear, Cisco is tied to the investment cycles of its large corporate and telecom customers. It was more than a year ago that it started to notice the slowdown in spending that has worsened into the current crisis, though the effects were mild.
Analysts expect the company to have experienced a more pronounced weakness in orders in the quarter that ended Oct. 24, but most see Cisco as a reasonably solid bet in a downturn, given its wide portfolio and market leadership in Internet routers.
Smaller competitor Juniper Networks Inc. reported solid results for the quarter. Motorola Inc., which competes with Cisco in equipment for cable operators, also reported relatively steady results.
BY THE NUMBERS: Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect the company to post earnings of 39 cents per share, on $10.3 billion in revenue. That's short of the company's own revenue forecast for sales growth of 8 percent from a year earlier, which works out to $10.7 billion.
For the current quarter, analysts expect earnings of 40 cents per share on revenue of $10.49 billion.
ANALYST TAKE: Credit Suisse analyst Paul Silverstein cut his target price on the stock from $25 to $19 on Monday, saying investors haven't fully realized that the current fiscal year will see slower growth in all segments. Over the longer term, the stock is still attractive, Silverstein said, rating it "Neutral."
In a Sunday note, Simon Leopold at Morgan Keegan described the opposite view, saying investors are already aware of the economic headwinds, and won't be surprised by lowered forecasts from the company. He rates the company "Outperform."
WHAT'S AHEAD: Cisco had $19.8 billion in net cash, or $3.29 per share, at the end of last quarter, so the company can keep trucking through a credit crunch. Executives have emphasized that the company sees market downturns as an opportunity to invest and grab market share.
"Like in the previous tech downturn, Cisco can use its strength to invest while others hunker down; we think it emerges stronger," wrote Morgan Keegan's Leopold.
STOCK PERFORMANCE: The stock fell 25 percent in the quarter to end at $16.31. The low of $15.90 hit Oct. 24 was the lowest since 2003, after the Internet boom. On Monday afternoon, the stock was down 75 cents, or 4.2 percent, at $17.02.
No comments:
Post a Comment