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Posted
Nov 20 2007, 08:36 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
For now, at least, Hewlett-Packard is immune from the financial turmoil that's hit other sectors. The company posted some impressive earnings yesterday at a time when other tech giants are being hit by the mortgage crisis. Strong notebook sales contributed to the good news.
Part of the reason is that HP is somewhat isolated from the financial services sector, unlike Cisco Systems, which counts banks among its top 20 customers. But HP wants that kind of business. CEO Mark Hurd said yesterday that the company wants more exposure to financial services. "We see that as a big opportunity for us," he said.
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Posted
May 07 2009, 04:23 AM
by
Jon Markman
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Cisco Systems (CSCO) reported strong earnings this week, but there are lots of other companies in the networking space that have cropped up in the past few years and deserve investors' attention.
One that our StockScouter system has liked a lot recently is SonicWall (SNWL), a small but fast-growing company based in Sunnyvale, Calif., that specializes in network and content security. Its size and earnings are dwarfed by industry giants Cisco and Juniper (JNPR), yet it has earned a secure niche for itself due to a strong lineup of innovative products.
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Posted
Aug 21 2009, 10:42 AM
by
Jim Jubak
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
 Ever since this recession began, Cisco Systems (CSCO) chief executive John Chambers has shown an unexpected talent for taking all the joy out of his company's earnings report.
And he did it again when, on August 5, Cisco reported earnings of 31 cents a share for the company's fiscal fourth quarter that ended on July 25.
That beat Wall Street estimates by two cents a share. (Both Cisco's and Wall Street's numbers exclude things like stock compensation that I think should be deducted as costs but, hey, that's how Wall Street scores the quarterly earnings game.) Revenue did fall 18% from the fiscal fourth quarter of 2008, but still beat Wall Street estimates of $8.51 billion by about $300 million. Gross margins held steady at 64%.
Bing: More on Cisco Systems
But investors who might have hoped that Chambers would call this quarter the bottom or forecast a looming turnaround would have been disappointed.
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Posted
Apr 28 2009, 03:48 AM
by
Douglas McIntyre
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
By the middle of the year, the federal government will own large, and in some cases, controlling interests, in two car companies and several major banks. There is a chance the the extent of rescue efforts and government ownership could move to auto parts suppliers and insurance companies. If the Treasury can pick up stock in Cisco (CSCO) and Intel (INTC), it can control most of the important sectors of the economy. That raises the issue of how the federal government gets all of that taxpayer money back.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that Citigroup (C) and Bank of America (BAC) have done poorly on their “stress tests”. Each bank may be encouraged to raise more capital. As a number of analysts have pointed out, private equity has no interest in stakes in troubled banks, even at a steep discount to current market values.
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Posted
Sep 25 2007, 08:33 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
EchoStar, the satellite company that runs the DISH Network, is buying Sling Media for $380 million. Former Sling VP Jeremy Toeman says the deal is a win-win for both sides, and I agree.
 I really didn't get Sling until execs actually demoed the company's signature product, the Slingbox (pictured), for me. The device connects to your TV and then can send the video to a computer over the Internet. The value here is for the traveler. If you're in a Singapore hotel room and you really, really want to catch the premiere of "The Office" on TV, the Slingbox is so worth it. If you're in a U.S. city that isn't showing your hometown baseball team in action, there you go.
Sling Media has been a darling of the tech and venture communities for years, raising about $60 million in financing. But I've wondered how far the company could go with a $130 product. Bigger competitors, like Cisco, are closing in as well.
So from Sling's side, this was a good move and the company got a nice sum of money. In an interview with paidContent, Sling CEO Blake Krikorian said he was about to raise another round before this acquisition. He's hoping to remain operator agnostic, despite the new ownership
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Posted
Oct 01 2009, 01:00 PM
by
Jim Jubak
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Cisco Systems (CSCO) announced Thursday an offer to buy video conferencing leader Tandberg for $3 billion in cash. This is exactly the kind of new economy deal-making that drove me to add Cisco to Jubak's Picks on September 25th. (For more on the emerging new economy, see my September 25th post.)
The deal, which has been recommended by Tandberg's board, will extend Cisco's current video conferencing product line, heavily weighted toward high-end “telepresence” systems that sell for $150,000 to $200,000, into the larger conference room and desktop video conferencing market. Bing: How Cisco's telepresence works
The high-end telepresence market is about $500 million annually, but the video conferencing market is about $3.5 billion, according to technology market watcher Gartner. The video conferencing market is growing by about 18% a year, Gartner estimates.
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Posted
Mar 19 2009, 11:31 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
 I love the cute little Flip digital video cameras, and had no doubt that the company behind them would be snapped up by someone. But Cisco Systems (CSCO)? And for $590 million?
It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, especially after chief executive John Chambers said last month that he has "no interest" in buying a consumer device company. Either Chambers was lying, or Cisco just did a major strategy turnaround. Cisco has been making small forays into consumer electronics (like its new digital stereo system), but always with the larger goal of capitalizing on networks and moving data quickly across them. The company owns the ubiquitous Linksys routers, after all. So why buy Pure Digital, whose main product is an ultracheap camcorder with no networking capabilities? The consensus opinion is that,
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Posted
Sep 25 2009, 09:49 AM
by
Jim Jubak
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Remarks by Cisco Systems' (CSCO) chief executive John Chambers got me thinking about the potential for a new economy emerging in 2011 and beyond, so it's only fair that I begin my next stock market portfolio with shares of Cisco. (See my Friday morning post
for more on why I believe we're seeing the beginnings of the next stock market and what it might look like.)
I'm buying these shares today for my 12- to 18-month Jubak's Picks portfolio. Cisco is also a member of my long-term Jubak Picks 50 portfolio based on my book "The Jubak Picks."
Bing: Cisco and the smart grid
In a conference presentation, Chambers focused on what Cisco calls its advanced technologies business segment. This is a collection of businesses that each has the potential to become billion-dollar businesses. Chambers said Cisco had identified 30 such opportunities. (The advanced technologies segment accounted for about 29% of the company's revenue in fiscal 2008.)
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Posted
Nov 24 2008, 08:45 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
 Cisco Systems and Hewlett-Packard are turning out the lights in December, forcing employees into paid time off to save money. Cisco will shut down its offices from Dec. 29 through Jan. 2, and is "strongly" encouraging workers to also stay home for three days before Christmas, according to an internal memo obtained by Valleywag.
Company-funded parties are out. The memo asks workers to celebrate in "creative ways that result in no cost to the company." Hey, how about making Christmas ornaments with leftover toilet paper rolls?
Cisco is also cutting back on hiring and employee travel. And it's carefully reviewing spending on equipment, employee training, big purchases and outside services.
Memos like these are popping up at companies from coast to coast.
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Posted
Dec 29 2008, 10:45 AM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
Money Blog: Top Stocks Blog - MSN Money
Cisco Systems, whose shares are down 40% this year, is jumping into the consumer electronics business at the worst possible time. Or is it the best possible time?
The company's going to announce a new digital stereo system and other consumer products in January. Not the best environment for a splashy product launch: Consumer electronics companies are seeing a glut in inventory and are temporarily shutting down factories until sales pick up again.
But Cisco isn't aiming for the short term. The company has big visions of connecting its products to networks inside and outside the home. People having video chats with their relatives using Web cameras and high-def TVs.
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