Cisco vs. IBM: AI Growth Potential Comparison
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 4 days ago
0mins
Should l Buy CSCO?
Source: Fool
- AI Demand Driving Growth: IBM's watsonx platform and hybrid cloud solutions have catalyzed enterprise demand for AI, resulting in a 12% year-over-year growth in Q4 2025, with infrastructure and software sales increasing by 21% and 14%, respectively, indicating sustained demand for AI infrastructure.
- Cisco's Hardware Advantage: Cisco's AI infrastructure orders accounted for 13.7% of total revenue, achieving a 10% year-over-year growth in fiscal Q2 2026, highlighting rapid growth in the AI market, particularly through its Silicon One platform's unified routing and switching technology.
- Financial Performance Comparison: Cisco's five-year compound annual growth rate stands at 5.1%, slightly surpassing IBM's 4.7%, and while IBM reported slightly higher revenue growth in the most recent quarter, Cisco's AI infrastructure sales growth is more pronounced, indicating stronger market appeal.
- Dividend Yield Analysis: Although IBM offers a slightly higher dividend yield than Cisco's 2.00%, both companies have raised dividends at low single-digit percentages over the past few years, suggesting that investors should view them as stable income picks rather than high-growth dividend stocks.
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Analyst Views on CSCO
Wall Street analysts forecast CSCO stock price to rise
13 Analyst Rating
10 Buy
3 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 84.500
Low
76.00
Averages
91.30
High
100.00
Current: 84.500
Low
76.00
Averages
91.30
High
100.00
About CSCO
Cisco Systems, Inc. designs and sells a range of technologies that power the Internet. The Company is integrating its product portfolios across networking, security, collaboration, applications and cloud. The Company's segments include the Americas; Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), and Asia Pacific, Japan, and China (APJC). Its Networking product category represents its core networking technologies of switching, routing, wireless, fifth generation (5G), silicon, optics solutions and compute products. Its Security product category consists of its cloud and application security, industrial security, network security, and user and device security offerings. Its Collaboration product category consists of its meetings, collaboration devices, calling, contact center and platform as a service (CPaaS) offering. Its Observability product category consists of its full stack observability offerings.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- Rising Revenue from High-Performance Computing: The high-performance computing segment accounted for 61% of TSMC's total revenue in Q1, up from 55% in the previous quarter, highlighting the company's strengthened position in the AI market, despite an 11% decline in smartphone revenue.
- ASML Delivery Expectations: ASML anticipates delivering 80 low numerical aperture EUV machines in 2027, a figure that fell short of market expectations for 90 units, leading to a 3% drop in stock price following the earnings report.
- Increased Capital Expenditure Plans: TSMC expects capital expenditures to reach $52-$56 billion in 2026, significantly up from $40.5 billion in 2025, demonstrating the company's commitment to expanding advanced chip manufacturing capacity, although the market remains cautious about achieving its targeted 30% annual growth.
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- Revenue Structure Shift: The high-performance computing segment accounted for 61% of TSMC's overall revenue in Q1, up from 55% in the previous quarter, despite an 11% decline in smartphone revenue, highlighting market demand diversity and challenges.
- Cautious ASML Outlook: ASML raised its forward guidance and reported strong Q1 results, but its stock declined due to concerns over shrinking sales to China, reflecting investor caution regarding future growth prospects.
- Capital Expenditure Plans: TSMC expects capital expenditures to reach $52-$56 billion in 2026, significantly up from $40.5 billion in 2025, indicating the company's commitment to expanding advanced chip manufacturing capabilities, but also raising concerns about its ability to scale capacity quickly.
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See More
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- Record Profits for TSMC: TSMC reported a 58% year-over-year profit increase in Q1, reaching a new high, indicating robust demand for AI chips; however, its stock fell about 2%, reflecting market caution regarding future expectations.
- Rising Revenue from High-Performance Computing: The high-performance computing segment accounted for 61% of TSMC's total revenue in Q1, up from 55% in the previous quarter, highlighting the company's strengthened position in the AI market, despite an 11% decline in smartphone revenue.
- ASML Delivery Expectations: ASML anticipates delivering 80 low numerical aperture EUV machines in 2027, a figure that fell short of market expectations for 90 units, leading to a 3% drop in stock price following the earnings report.
- Increased Capital Expenditure Plans: TSMC expects capital expenditures to reach $52-$56 billion in 2026, significantly up from $40.5 billion in 2025, demonstrating the company's commitment to expanding advanced chip manufacturing capacity, although the market remains cautious about achieving its targeted 30% annual growth.
See More
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- Strong TSMC Performance: TSMC reported a 58% year-over-year profit increase in Q1, reaching a record level driven by robust demand for AI chips, yet its stock fell about 2%, indicating market concerns over high expectations.
- Revenue Structure Shift: The high-performance computing segment accounted for 61% of TSMC's overall revenue in Q1, up from 55% in the previous quarter, despite an 11% decline in smartphone revenue, highlighting market demand diversity and challenges.
- Cautious ASML Outlook: ASML raised its forward guidance and reported strong Q1 results, but its stock declined due to concerns over shrinking sales to China, reflecting investor caution regarding future growth prospects.
- Capital Expenditure Plans: TSMC expects capital expenditures to reach $52-$56 billion in 2026, significantly up from $40.5 billion in 2025, indicating the company's commitment to expanding advanced chip manufacturing capabilities, but also raising concerns about its ability to scale capacity quickly.
See More
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- New Partnerships: Endace has announced new partnerships with prominent companies such as Cisco XDR and Splunk SIEM as part of its Fusion Partner Program, aimed at enhancing network security capabilities through integrated full packet capture technology.
- Integration Upgrades: By integrating with various security solutions, Endace Probes provide real-time network visibility and forensic evidence, enabling NOC and SOC teams to detect and resolve network threats more efficiently, thereby improving overall response times.
- Growing Market Demand: Michael Morris, Senior Director of Technology Alliances at Endace, noted that customers are increasingly recognizing the importance of always-on packet capture, which has become a fundamental requirement for NOC and SOC teams, reflecting strong demand for efficient forensic tools in the cybersecurity market.
- Industry Influence: Endace showcased its full packet capture technology at major cybersecurity trade shows in 2025 and 2026, further solidifying its leadership position in the cybersecurity field and attracting more partners' attention and participation.
See More
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- Successful Debt Restructuring: Lumen Technologies has successfully reduced its net debt-to-EBITDA ratio below 4x after a $15 billion debt restructuring, significantly improving its financial condition and laying the groundwork for future high-growth initiatives.
- Strategic Shift Focus: The company is pivoting towards high-growth areas such as AI networking and cloud services, planning to layer a digital services platform over its fiber network to meet customer demands for rapid data processing, thereby enhancing its market competitiveness.
- Stock Price Rebound: Following a partnership announcement with AWS Interconnect, Lumen's shares spiked over 10% in afternoon trading, reflecting positive market sentiment towards its new strategy and attracting increased investor interest.
- Future Growth Expectations: By 2030, Lumen anticipates that its higher growth strategic businesses will account for 70% of total revenue, with adjusted EBITDA margins expected to exceed 30%, indicating strong growth potential in the coming years.
See More
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- Asset Restructuring and Debt Reduction: After narrowly avoiding bankruptcy, Lumen Technologies successfully reduced its net debt-to-EBITDA ratio below 4x by selling its consumer business to AT&T and restructuring $15 billion in debt, laying a solid foundation for future high-growth initiatives.
- Digital Services Platform Development: The company plans to layer a digital services platform over its fiber network, with digital services revenue projected to grow from $117 million in 2025 to between $500 million and $600 million by 2028, significantly enhancing customer data processing capabilities and response times.
- Strategic Investment and Market Positioning: Lumen's partnership with AWS Interconnect leverages its last-mile and metro network infrastructure to streamline cloud connectivity for businesses, which is expected to drive growth in AI and cloud infrastructure market share.
- Leadership Change and Future Outlook: The arrival of a new management team and refreshed board signifies Lumen's commitment to stabilizing finances while pivoting towards high-growth areas, with expectations that 70% of revenue will come from emerging businesses by 2030 and adjusted EBITDA margins will exceed 30%.
See More
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- IBM Revenue Growth: IBM achieved a 12% year-over-year revenue growth in Q4 of fiscal 2025, with infrastructure and software sales increasing by 21% and 14% respectively, reflecting ongoing demand for AI infrastructure and enhancing its competitive position in the market.
- Cisco Strong Sales: Cisco's revenue grew by 10% year-over-year in Q2 of fiscal 2026, with AI infrastructure orders accounting for 13.7% of total revenue, indicating rapid expansion and technological advantages in the AI market.
- AI Infrastructure Comparison: Cisco's AI infrastructure sales reached $1.3 billion in Q1 of fiscal 2026, a sequential growth of 62.5%, while IBM's AI infrastructure only grew by 41.7% in the same quarter, showcasing Cisco's faster market share gain.
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See More
