Cisco Raises Fiscal 2027 Outlook After Record Quarter

The Tip Desk · November 12, 2026 · 3 min read

First-quarter revenue reached $18.5 billion, up 24%, as the networking company lifted full-year sales and non-GAAP earnings guidance.

Cisco Systems (CSCO) reported first-quarter revenue of $18.5 billion for the period ended October 24, 2026, up 24% from a year earlier, and raised its fiscal 2027 revenue and non-GAAP earnings outlook after the quarter.

Year-over-year growth accelerated from 18% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026 and 12% in the third quarter. The networking company said the revenue and non-GAAP earnings-per-share growth rates were the strongest in more than 15 years. GAAP net income rose 59% to $4.6 billion from $2.9 billion a year earlier, while diluted EPS rose 58% to $1.14 from $0.72. Non-GAAP net income was $5.6 billion, or $1.40 a share.

Chair and CEO Chuck Robbins said organizations were turning to Cisco to scale, secure and optimize environments for the agentic AI era, and that the company was in the early stages of a multi-year networking supercycle. Chief financial officer Mark Patterson said revenue, non-GAAP operating margin and non-GAAP EPS all exceeded the high end of the company’s guidance ranges, and that the first-quarter performance gave Cisco confidence to raise fiscal 2027 revenue and non-GAAP EPS guidance.

Product revenue was $14.67 billion, up 32%. Services revenue was $3.85 billion, up 1%. Networking product revenue was $11.13 billion, up 43%. Security was $2.12 billion, up 7%; Collaboration was $1.14 billion, up 8%; and Observability was $279 million, up 2%. Americas revenue was $11.51 billion, up 28%; APJC was $2.56 billion, up 21%; and EMEA was $4.46 billion, up 18%.

GAAP operating margin expanded to 30.2% from 24.7% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026 and 25.0% in the third quarter. Non-GAAP operating margin reached a record 37.8%, from 35.9% and 34.2%. GAAP operating income was $5.6 billion, up 66%. Non-GAAP operating income was $7.0 billion, up 37%. GAAP operating expenses were $6.2 billion, down 3% from a year earlier and 33.4% of revenue. Non-GAAP operating expenses were $5.1 billion, up 2%, and 27.8% of revenue.

GAAP total gross margin was 63.7%, compared with 65.5% a year earlier. Non-GAAP total gross margin was 65.6%, versus 68.1%. Cash flow from operating activities was $4.4 billion, up 36% from $3.2 billion a year earlier.

Remaining performance obligations were $46.2 billion, up 8% year over year, with product RPO up 7% and services RPO up 9%. Deferred revenue was $30.1 billion, up 7%. Cisco closed the acquisition of WideField Security Inc. in the quarter.

The company returned $3.7 billion to stockholders through $1.7 billion of dividends and $2.0 billion of buybacks, including about 18 million shares at an average price of $112.38. Remaining authorization for repurchases was $6.1 billion. Cash and cash equivalents and investments were $15.8 billion at quarter-end. Cisco declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 a share, payable January 20, 2027.

For the second quarter of fiscal 2027, Cisco expects revenue of $18.0 billion to $18.2 billion and non-GAAP EPS of $1.34 to $1.36, with GAAP EPS of $1.07 to $1.09. It raised fiscal 2027 revenue guidance to $74.8 billion to $75.8 billion from a prior range of $72.2 billion to $73.4 billion, and non-GAAP EPS to $5.47 to $5.53 from $5.05 to $5.11. GAAP EPS is estimated at $4.38 to $4.44 for the full year.

Cisco also raised its expectation for AI infrastructure revenue from hyperscalers to $9 billion in fiscal 2027, more than double the $4 billion delivered in fiscal 2026 and above a prior $7.5 billion outlook. Patterson said the company is unlocking operating leverage that is enabling it to grow earnings faster than revenue.