Revenue rose to $17.25 billion, topping the $16.82 billion analyst estimate. Adjusted earnings of $1.22 per share beat the $1.17 consensus estimate.
Management described the current environment as the early stages of a multi-year networking and AI infrastructure supercycle. The company cited accelerating AI adoption, hyperscaler investment, enterprise AI deployments, cybersecurity demand and high-performance networking.
During the earnings call, CEO Chuck Robbins said companies increasingly view AI readiness, cybersecurity and infrastructure upgrades as essential spending.
Customers are shifting money from other budgets into IT because falling behind could put their businesses at a competitive disadvantage.
Robbins said the spending is becoming similar to cybersecurity investments: “It’s just not optional.” Cisco said the trend is helping fuel what it calls a multiyear networking “super cycle.”
