Cisco Stock Hits All-Time High After 25 Years, Fueled by AI Infrastructure Demand
Cisco Systems Inc. shares closed at a record $80.25 on Wednesday, finally eclipsing its dot-com era peak of $80.06 set in March 2000. The networking giant's 36% year-to-date gain marks its strongest annual performance since 2009.
The milestone comes as Cisco reports $1.3 billion in AI infrastructure orders from major web companies. Unlike many dot-com casualties, Cisco survived the 2000s crash by maintaining its position as backbone provider for enterprise networks.
At a $317 billion market cap, Cisco now trades at 19 times forward earnings - a far cry from its 96.7 multiple during the internet bubble. The stock's resurgence reflects enterprise demand for networking infrastructure to support AI workloads.