CSCO vs UI: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: CSCO is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. CSCO and UI share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined CSCO and UI exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Cisco Systems, founded in 1984 by Stanford University computer scientists and headquartered in San Jose, California, designs, develops, and sells technologies that power, secure, and draw insights from the internet across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific. The company generates revenue across four main product categories: Networking (switches, routers, wireless, and increasingly AI-optimized silicon and infrastructure), Security (firewall, identity, and endpoint products plus the acquired Splunk platform for observability and threat detection), Collaboration (Webex-based unified communications and video), and Observability (application performance and IT operations monitoring). Services revenue, which includes software subscriptions and technical support, accounts for a material and growing share of the overall mix, giving the company a recurring-revenue cushion alongside its hardware cycles.

Full CSCO guide

Ubiquiti designs and sells networking and connected-device hardware built around two software platforms, UniFi OS and airMAX. The UniFi line covers WiFi access points, switches, security gateways, the UniFi Protect camera system, UniFi Access door controllers and the UniFi Talk phone system, all administered from one console. That breadth is the point: a hotel, a warehouse or a multi-site retailer can run networking, video and door access from a single pane of glass without paying per-device licensing. The company reports one operating segment but splits revenue two ways. Enterprise Technology was ~$2.97 billion in fiscal 2026, ~91% of the total and up ~32% year over year. Service Provider Technology, the legacy long-range wireless radio business that built the company, was ~$302 million, ~9% of revenue and down ~5%. Geographically, North America is ~53% of sales, EMEA ~36%, Asia Pacific ~7% and South America ~4%.

Full UI guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• CSCO drivers: AI Networking Demand Surge; Splunk and the Security Platform Story.
• UI drivers: UniFi has broadened from networking into the whole building; The cost structure is the moat, not the hardware.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Cisco's trailing P/E has expanded materially above its 3- and 5-year historical averages, meaning the stock reflects optimistic assumptions about AI-driven growth that require sustained execution to justify. For UI, the valuation carries most of the risk.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick CSCO if you believe its drivers more; UI if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the CSCO and UI guides.

CSCO. Cisco's trailing P/E of roughly 40x sits meaningfully above its 3-year average of around 21-22x, reflecting the market's repricing of the stock as an AI infrastructure beneficiary rather than a mature hardware company. The forward P/E of approximately 25x suggests analysts expect earnings growth to close some of that gap, but execution on Splunk integration and security revenue recovery will be key. Gross margin compression, from approximately 65.6% to 63.6% GAAP year over year in the most recent quarter, is a metric worth tracking as product mix and memory costs evolve.

UI. Fiscal 2026 closed on June 30, 2026 and the Form 10-K was filed August 21, 2026, so these are audited full-year figures rather than estimates. Cash of ~$523 million plus ~$99 million of securities against zero short-term borrowings puts the enterprise value slightly below the market capitalisation, at roughly ten times sales and about 37 times free cash flow. The 52-week range of ~$440 to ~$1,100 means the same business has been valued anywhere from ~$27 billion to ~$67 billion within twelve months.

Headline figures (approximate, 2026-06-27): CSCO shows revenue (ttm, as of april 2026) ~$60.7 billion, revenue growth (yoy, ttm) ~9%, non-gaap eps (q3 fy2026) $1.06, gaap gross margin (q3 fy2026) ~63.6%; UI shows revenue (fy2026, ended june 30) ~$3.27B, up ~27% from ~$2.57B, net income / diluted eps ~$960M / ~$15.85 (vs ~$712M / ~$11.76), gross / operating margin ~46.2% / ~36.2%, free cash flow ~$909M (~$929M operating cash flow less ~$20M capex).

CSCO and UI are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined CSCO and UI exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.