Why Is Cisco Stock Moving Higher? New Silicon One G300 Chip

Cisco Systems (CSCO) stock surged on February 10, 2026, trading at $88.05, up $1.27 (+1.46%) as of 10:27 AM EST, following the company’s announcement of its Silicon One G300 AI networking chip. The new 102.4 Tbps switch chip positions Cisco to compete directly with Nvidia and Broadcom in the rapidly expanding $600 billion AI infrastructure market. The chip, manufactured using TSMC’s advanced 3-nanometer technology, is designed to power massive AI data centers and is expected to launch in the second half of 2026.

Cisco Unveils Silicon One G300 to Target AI Data Center Networking

The Silicon One G300 represents a significant technological leap for Cisco, featuring what the company calls “Intelligent Collective Networking” that combines an industry-leading fully shared packet buffer with path-based load balancing and proactive network telemetry.

According to Cisco, the chip can complete certain AI computing jobs 28% faster through automatic microsecond-level data rerouting, while delivering 33% increased network utilization compared to non-optimized systems. This performance boost is critical for maximizing GPU utilization in large-scale AI training and inference operations.

Energy efficiency is another major selling point for the G300-powered systems. The new Cisco N9000 and Cisco 8000 systems will be available in 100% liquid-cooled designs that improve energy efficiency by approximately 70% compared to previous generations. Martin Lund, Executive Vice President of Cisco’s Common Hardware Group, emphasized that the chip addresses a fundamental challenge in AI infrastructure: “It’s not just about faster GPUs – the network must deliver scalable bandwidth and reliable, congestion-free data movement.”

The G300’s “shock absorber” features are specifically designed to prevent network bottlenecks that occur when massive amounts of data hit networks with tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of connections simultaneously.

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CSCO Rallies Ahead of Earnings as Cisco Signals AI Growth Momentum

As of market open on February 10, 2026, CSCO stock opened at $84.56 with a previous close of $84.82, reaching an intraday high of $88.05. The stock has demonstrated strong momentum with a year-to-date return of +13.26% compared to the S&P 500’s +1.74%, and an impressive one-year return of +42.75% versus the benchmark’s +15.58%.

With a market capitalization of $342.88 billion and analyst consensus rating of “Buy,” Cisco trades at a forward P/E ratio of 21.01. The 52-week range spans from $52.11 to $87.25, indicating the stock recently hit new highs following the Silicon One G300 announcement.

Analyst sentiment remains bullish, with Evercore ISI Group recently upgrading CSCO to “Outperform” on January 26, 2026, raising its price target from $80 to $100. The average analyst price target sits at $87.19, with a high target of $100.00. Cisco’s financial metrics show solid fundamentals with a profit margin of 17.90%, return on equity of 22.42%, and trailing twelve-month revenue of $57.7 billion.

The company is scheduled to report Q2 FY2026 earnings on February 11, 2026, at 4:30 PM EST, with analysts expecting 8% year-over-year revenue growth. The Silicon One G300 announcement strategically positions Cisco ahead of this earnings call, signaling the company’s commitment to capturing significant share in the booming AI infrastructure market where networking has become a critical competitive battleground.

Disclaimer: The author does not hold or have a position in any securities discussed in the article. All stock prices were quoted at the time of writing.