We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Communication and Media Stocks To Buy According to Hedge Funds. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) stands against the other communication and media stocks.

The global telecommunications industry faces significant growth challenges amidst increasing demand for its essential services. Driven primarily by video traffic, global data consumption across telecom networks is expected to nearly triple by 2027. However, providers are experiencing limited pricing power in commoditized connectivity and data services, with internet access revenues projected to grow modestly at a 4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) to reach $921.6 billion by 2027. Meanwhile, telecommunications companies (telcos) face substantial costs as they invest heavily in infrastructure to support 5G and other emerging technologies, with an estimated $342.1 billion investment forecasted for 2027 alone. These insights are highlighted in PwC’s inaugural Global Telecom Outlook, which underscores the strategic imperatives for telcos to sustain growth in a competitive landscape. Alongside traditional cost-cutting and optimization efforts, telcos are advised to explore growth opportunities such as IoT solutions, private 5G networks for businesses, fixed wireless broadband for households, and tailored digital infrastructure services for sectors like entertainment, healthcare, manufacturing, and mobility. Embracing these growth areas requires telcos to collaborate effectively within broader ecosystems that are reshaping the industry.

In the business-to-consumer (B2C) sector, telecommunications companies (telcos) are experiencing heightened demand driven by evolving user preferences, particularly as new devices with increasingly data-intensive requirements emerge, largely fueled by video content. By 2027, of the projected 9.7 million petabytes (PB) of data consumption, nearly 7.7 million PB (79%) will be attributed to digitized video content, surpassing all other categories combined. Over the same period, data consumption from traditional communications has grown 104% from 2018 to 2022 due in part to pandemic-related factors, but is expected to increase only 26.8% through 2027. Games represent another significant growth area, with data consumption associated with gaming projected to grow at a 21% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2022 to 2027, driven by the shift towards online and cloud gaming. Virtual reality (VR), fueled by the expansion of the metaverse, is also on the rise, with an anticipated 43% CAGR in VR data consumption over the next five years, accounting for 5% of total data consumption by 2027.

Despite technological advancements and increasing competition, the price of data is declining, impacting internet access revenues which are expected to grow at a modest 4% CAGR to reach $921.6 billion by 2027 from $757.7 billion in 2022, closely tracking global GDP growth. Cellular data is forecasted to be the fastest-growing category, with a 27% CAGR from 2022 to 2027, driven by significant variations in data consumption patterns across regions. In North America, cellular data is projected to comprise 6% of all data traffic, compared to 30% in Asia, particularly influenced by developments in India where the rollout of 5G is expected to catalyze service innovation and subscriber growth, potentially reaching 300 million to 350 million 5G subscribers by 2026. Telecom giants such as Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel are poised to capitalize on this opportunity by fostering a robust gaming ecosystem and expanding into sectors like healthcare.

Our Methodology

We leveraged Insider Monkey’s comprehensive database of 920 prominent hedge funds to identify the top 10 media and communications stocks with the highest level of hedge fund investment as of Q1 2024. These stocks are listed in order of increasing hedge fund ownership, providing insight into the most popular communication and media stocks among elite investors.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 58

On June 4, Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) announced the launch of a $1 billion global investment fund aimed at expanding and developing secure, reliable, and trustworthy AI solutions. The company is making strategic investments in world-class startups across software and infrastructure, reinforcing Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) strategy to connect and protect the AI era. Among the initial generative AI startups joining the Cisco Investments portfolio are Cohere, Mistral AI, and Scale AI, all of which will contribute to building a broader AI ecosystem. In its latest quarterly earnings announcement on May 15, Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) reported a normalized earnings per share of $0.88, beating expectations by $0.06. The company posted actual revenue of $12.70 billion, exceeding forecasts by $79.01 million.

The number of hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database owning stakes in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) fell to 58 in Q1 2024, as compared to 60 in the preceding quarter. The consolidated value of these stakes is nearly $1.62 billion. Among these hedge funds, Cliff Asness’s AQR Capital Management was the company’s leading stakeholder in Q1.

Oakmark Fund made the following comment about Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) in its Q3 2023 investor letter:

“Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) is the leading networking solutions company. Networking equipment becomes more important as businesses modernize their IT infrastructure, and Cisco is well positioned to capture this demand given its broad portfolio and highly effective go-to-market strategy. Cisco is transitioning away from selling mainly transactional hardware and toward selling more software and subscriptions. This shift is expected to accelerate revenue growth, improve operating margins and build recurring revenue. Despite these notable business improvements, Cisco still trades near a trough valuation relative to the S&P 500 Index. More recently, Cisco announced its intention to acquire Splunk, a leader in security and observability, adding to its already strong position in the increasingly important security market. At a low-teens multiple of our estimate of normalized earnings, Cisco is trading comfortably below our estimate of intrinsic value.”

Overall CSCO ranks 8th on our list of the best communication and media stocks to buy. You can visit 10 Best Communication and Media Stocks To Buy According to Hedge Funds to see the other communication and media stocks that are on hedge funds’ radar. While we acknowledge the potential of CSCO as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CSCO but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.