Cisco downgraded at Goldman Sachs as stock approaches target
Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) is being downgraded at Goldman Sachs, as the investment firm notes the IT networking giant is getting close to its price target and its fundamental outlook is "in line with consensus."
Analyst Rod Hall lowered his rating to neutral, but kept his $65 price target, noting that Goldman's Expected Activity index, which has historically predicted Cisco's order trajectory, has continued to decline with its December reading now in negative territory, after peaking in the middle of last year.

"While we continue to see Ciscoâs ongoing Cat 9K refresh and increased campus networking demand as tailwinds we believe this is now more balanced by broader demand headwinds that we expect to materialize," Hall wrote in a note to clients.
Hall upgraded Cisco (CSCO) on March 25, 2021 and since then, the stock has outperformed the S&P 500, gaining 20% versus 18% for the index.
Cisco (CSCO) shares are down more than 2.5% in pre-market trading to $58.22.
Hall added that Cisco's enterprise and commercial orders are positively correlated to the ESI, which also shows positive correlation to the revenue Cisco generates in the Americas. While the company's backlog is at a "record high," the analyst said he thinks order growth is more important to the stock.
"Given this we expect solid revenue contribution as Cisco works its way through this backlog," Hall wrote in a note to clients. "However, should the decline in our EAI translate into IT capital spending weakness we would expect order growth to slow for CSCO. In our opinion, an order trajectory change and accompanying commentary on demand would likely be more important for Ciscoâs stock than would backward looking backlog clearance."
Last week, Cisco (CSCO) was recommended as one of the top IT networking stocks at Evercore, with the firm expected to benefit from its exposure to hyperscalers, such as Google and Apple.