Earlier this month, Citi Research estimated that data centre capex by the hyperscalers will increase 40% YoY in 2025. Much of it will go toward data centre interconnect (DCI) build-outs in which vendors like Cisco connect separate data centres into giant AI clusters that can house more than 300,000 GPUs working in concert on large AI data sets.

Cisco's strong and innovative portfolio and rich partner base are noteworthy drivers that justify a premium valuation.

The stock of technology giant Cisco Systems ($CSCO) has received a big upgrade from analysts at Citigroup ($C). Analysts at Citi raised their