Cisco beat Wall Street estimates for first-quarter results and raised its annual revenue forecast on Nov 12, as the network-gear maker bets on sustained strong demand from companies building out their AI infrastructure.
The company has doubled down on its AI efforts through strategic investments as Big Tech’s massive spending moves beyond AI processors to the switches and routers required to connect large data-centre systems.
Cisco expects fiscal 2027 revenue in the range of US$74.8 billion (S$96.2 billion) to US$75.8 billion, compared with its previous forecast of US$72.2 billion to US73.4 billion.
“We are in the very early stages of a multi-year networking supercycle,” chief executive Chuck Robbins said in a statement.
The company raised its fiscal 2027 forecast for AI infrastructure revenue from hyperscalers to US$9 billion from US$7.5 billion. The segment generated revenue of US$4 billion a year earlier.
Investors have been worried about a possible slowdown in data-centre build-out following Democrats’ sweeping win in the US midterms, as well as rising borrowing costs and their impact on the debt-fuelled construction.
Cisco reported first-quarter revenue of US$18.5 billion, compared with analysts’ average estimate of US$18.14 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.
The company reported an adjusted profit of US$1.40 per share for the quarter ended Oct 24, above estimates of US$1.33.
Cisco is also building software tools that businesses can use to build their own armies of bots, known as AI agents, to protect their IT infrastructure against cybersecurity threats.
Shares of the San Jose, California-based company were flat in volatile extended trading. They have risen about 32% so far this year through the Nov 12 close.
Cisco’s gross margin has been a worry for investors, as a shortage of memory chips has pushed up component costs for hardware makers while suppliers prioritise chips for AI data-centre customers.
“A small dip in gross margin is not a major concern given higher memory and component costs,” said Bob O’Donnell, president and chief analyst at TECHnalysis Research.
Cisco’s raised annual forecast and results above estimates are what the market wants to see from a company tied to AI infrastructure, he added.
The company reported first-quarter adjusted gross margin of 65.6%, in line with estimates, but down from 68.1% a year earlier. REUTERS
