At 4:05 PM EST on May 13, 2026, Cisco opened its Q3 books. What followed wasn't a normal earnings beat. It was a landslide.
What Happened
Cisco reported adjusted earnings of $1.06 per share — three cents above consensus. Revenue rose 12% to $15.84 billion, with product revenue jumping 17%. Q4 guidance was raised to $16.7–16.9 billion, well above the $15.82 billion Street estimate.
The real earthquake came from AI infrastructure: Cisco logged $5.3 billion in AI orders over the first three quarters of the fiscal year — and raised the full-year forecast to $9 billion.
The stock responded with a +15% surge the next morning. That's Cisco's strongest single-day move in over a decade. By market close, the stock stood at $116.73 — a new all-time high, finally surpassing its dot-com peak from 2000.
The Options Side
On May 14 between 8:34 and 9:47 AM EST, 84,000 call contracts crossed the tape — 68% concentrated on the $90 strike expiring May 15. These contracts opened at $0.45 and closed at $26.80. That's a return of +5,855%.
Implied volatility on 30-day ATM options spiked from 19% pre-earnings to 38% immediately after the report, before settling back to 27% as the stock consolidated the new level.
The call-put ratio hit 4:1 — the highest in Cisco's options history outside of expiration days. Institutional buyers dominated: 91% of volume came from sweeps over $500,000.
What Traders Are Watching Now
The $120 strike is collecting the highest open interest for June expiry — over 52,000 contracts. That's the level analysts see as realistic following the guidance raise. Morgan Stanley lifted its price target from $98 to $128.
On the hedge side, some large positions bought $105 puts for July — a classic protect-the-gain trade after such a run.
The next catalyst question: Can Cisco confirm the AI order pipeline in Q4? If the $9 billion guidance holds, further analyst upgrades are likely. If not, the market will sell off quickly.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Past performance is not indicative of future results.