Cisco is one of a small handful of companies whose importance in business looms even larger than its market cap (which was, for a while, the world's largest at the height of the dot-com boom and currently totals a hefty USD159 billion-plus). Renowned as a manufacturer of advanced routing and switching technology that provides the foundation for the Internet, Cisco is also a business case study example of growth through acquisition (its adeptness at integrating acquisitions is legendary). Like other tech companies, Cisco's stock (and business) suffered when the bubble deflated: the stock declining from a high of near 100 (adjusted for splits) to its present range in the mid-twenties. Times were tough. But unlike many of its Silicon Valley neighbors, Cisco now finds itself well-positioned for the coming wave of Internet growth that analysts foresee with the explosion of video and voice.
展开▼
