Earnings Preview: Cisco Branches Out In Fiscal 1Q

JORDAN ROBERTSON

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Cisco Systems Inc. reports its fiscal first-quarter results after the market closes on Wednesday. The following is a summary of key developments and analyst opinion about the period.

OVERVIEW: Cisco, based in San Jose, Calif., is the world's top maker of computer networking gear. But its latest moves show how badly it wants to expand into other areas and beef up its core offerings amid mounting pressure from rivals.

Cisco, which is coming out of the recession with a bigger cash balance than any other technology company, has put its money to use in recent months with several acquisitions.

Cisco announced last month that it is buying Norway's Tandberg ASA, which makes videoconferencing equipment, for $3 billion. The company also is purchasing Starent Networks Corp., a maker of equipment for wireless carriers, for $2.9 billion, and ScanSafe, an Internet security company, for $183 million.

Cisco is pushing into selling servers, a territory dominated by IBM Corp. and Hewlett-Packard Co. The company is even getting into the gadget game, having just bought Pure Digital, which makes the popular Flip Video camera.