Cisco: Earnings Up, Share Price Down

Investors unsettled by Cisco’s last earnings report and the “mixed signals” CEO John Chambers said he’d been getting from customers aren’t finding much solace in the company’s latest earnings report. While Cisco did beat analyst estimates, its market outlook doesn’t seem all that much improved from last quarter.

Posting first-quarter results after the bell today, Cisco reported earnings per share of 42 cents on revenue of $10.75 billion, up from 30 cents a share and $9 billion a year earlier. Analysts had been expecting 40 cents a share, on revenue of $10.75 billion.

So a beat, but one couched in some pretty subdued language from CEO John Chambers.

“Cisco delivered solid financial results, during a challenging economic environment. While we have seen capital spending moderate in some areas of our business, our execution in the areas we can control and influence speak to the success and relevance of the company’s strategy. Our position in the market, including continued product innovation, market share momentum and operational excellence, positions us for growth and flexibility well into the future as we strengthen our role as a trusted business partner to our customers.”

“challenging economic environment”
“capital spending moderate”
“execution in the areas we can control and influence”

All red flags for investors, who don’t seem to have much cared for Chambers’s remarks. Cisco shares are down 4.3 percent as I write this.