Cisco offers you a solid dividend plus growth

Article Excerpt

Cisco Systems continues to diversify into security software and other services. That cuts its reliance on selling computer networking hardware. The company’s supply chain problems are also easing, which should let it keep raising your dividend and buying back shares. CISCO SYSTEMS INC. $48 is a buy. The company (Nasdaq symbol CSCO; High-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Manufacturing sector; Shares outstanding: 4.1 billion; Market cap: $196.8 billion; Dividend yield: 3.2%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.cisco.com) makes hardware and software to link and manage computer networks. Starting with the April 2022 payment, Cisco raised your quarterly dividend by 2.7%, to $0.38 a share from $0.37. The annual rate of $1.52 yields 3.2%. Cisco’s revenue rose 5.2%, from $49.33 billion in 2018 to $51.90 billion in 2019 (fiscal years end July 31). Revenue then fell 5.0% to $49.30 billion in 2020 as businesses cut spending on new technology in response to uncertainty over the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2021, the company acquired Acacia Communications for $4.5 billion. Acacia’s optical interconnect…