Cisco reported revenue from continuing operations up 2 percent to USD 13.2 billion in its fiscal first quarter to October. That was at the high end of its outlook for flat to 2 percent growth. For the current quarter, the company predicted a slowdown, with revenues down 3-5 percent year-on-year.
Net profit in the past quarter fell 18 percent to USD 2.9 billion, and EPS dropped 12 percent to USD 0.68, in line with Cisco's outlook on an increase in costs. The adjusted gross margin improved to 65.9 percent from 64.2 percent a year ago, better than expected.
Revenue growth was led by the security segment, up 22 percent to USD 815 million. Revenue from other applications increased 6 percent to USD 1.5 billion, while the core hardware business fell 1 percent to USD 7.5 billion. Cisco said the share of revenue from subscription sales increased to 71 percent, up 12 percent points year-on-year.
For the new quarter, Cisco forecast revenues down 3-5 percent, an adjusted gross margin of 64.5-65.5 percent and adjusted EPS at USD 0.75-0.77. Its product orders in the past quarter fell 4 percent year-on-year, with declines in all regions and all customer segments, apart from the public sector.
