Independent research on the U.S. markets, Baptista Research

Baptista Research

Independent research on the U.S. markets

Baptista Research is an independent financial research house focused on the U.S. markets. We provide equity research as well as credit research reports on the top-listed U.S. companies with most of our focus on technology, consumer goods and services, automobiles, industrials, oil and gas, pharma, and healthcare. Our research has served more than 3000 institutional investors including mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, family offices, and various buy-side firms. We operate a research subscription service where institutions, as well as retail investors, can have priority access to all our research. We also have a wide distribution of our research reports across some of the top global financial platforms. Apart from equity research and credit research, we also provide advisory services with respect to mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity/ venture capital fundraising, valuation reports, and investment management services for corporates.
Baptista Research is owned and managed by Ishan Majumdar, an ex-Venture Capitalist/ Investment Banker, a Chartered Accountant, and a Masters’ degree holder in Management from HEC Paris. Ishan has nearly a decade of experience in Mergers and Acquisitions, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), Venture Capital Investing, Corporate Strategy, and Valuation in front-office roles at the likes of BNP Paribas CIB, Credit Agricole CIB, Groupe Danone, and TIW Private Equity. He has worked on and closed multiple acquisition deals, leveraged buyouts, and start-up investment transactions.

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul><li>Cisco Systems delivered its strongest financial performance in 30 years during fiscal 2026, recording a 12% year-over-year revenue increase to over $63 billion and achieving record operating margin and earnings per employee.</li><li>The fourth quarter further highlighted this momentum with revenues reaching $17.3 billion—an 18% year-over-year growth—and product revenue up 24%.</li><li>Net income rose 23%, demonstrating effective operating leverage, while free cash flow supported $12.7 billion in shareholder returns through dividends and share repurchases, representing 99% of free cash flow for the year.</li></ul>

Cisco Systems delivered its strongest financial performance in 30 years during fiscal 2026, recording a 12% year-over-year revenue increase to over $63 billion and achieving record operating margin and earnings per employee.The fourth quarter further highlighted this momentum with revenues reaching $17.3 billion—an 18% year-over-year growth—and product revenue up 24%.Net income rose 23%, demonstrating effective operating leverage, while free cash flow supported $12.7 billion in shareholder returns through dividends and share repurchases, representing 99% of free cash flow for the year.

Cisco's AI Orders Hit $9.3 Billion — A New Networking Powerhouse Emerges!

CEO / Founder, Crea8

Kim-Hwa Lim

CEO / Founder

Make an Impact

Crea8

Crea8 blends AI-driven precision, big data scalability, and rigorous quantitative frameworks with seasoned human insight. By extracting actionable intelligence from vast global datasets, we eliminate emotional bias and deliver optimal risk-adjusted returns. Our hybrid approach uncovers hidden market efficiencies and ensures your capital is dynamically positioned across markets.

Cross Asset Strategy

<ul><li>Dividends are a key component of overall returns. The strategy seeks to invest in high dividend and Shariah compliant stocks globally.</li><li>By adopting a portfolio of stocks instead of individual stocks, the strategy is diversified across countries and industries; and optimised with respect to their expected risks and returns.</li><li>Previous portfolio returned -2% vs. MSCI World (-1.3%) – underperformed the benchmark by -0.7%.</li></ul>

Dividends are a key component of overall returns. The strategy seeks to invest in high dividend and Shariah compliant stocks globally.By adopting a portfolio of stocks instead of individual stocks, the strategy is diversified across countries and industries; and optimised with respect to their expected risks and returns.Previous portfolio returned -2% vs. MSCI World (-1.3%) – underperformed the benchmark by -0.7%.

Global Income (Shariah) Portfolio (14-Sep-2026)

Smartkarma AI Primers, Smartkarma

αSK Primers

Smartkarma AI Primers

Smartkarma

Smartkarma unites the fragmented investment industry, connecting institutional investors, independent research providers, and corporates within a single network.

Research Reinvented

<ul>
  <li>Cisco is strategically pivoting from a hardware-centric model to a software and subscription-based platform, a move accelerated by its acquisition of Splunk to bolster its security and observability offerings.</li>
  <li>The company is capitalizing on the demand for AI infrastructure, securing significant orders from hyperscalers, which presents a major growth catalyst but also introduces margin pressures due to higher memory costs and product mix shifts.</li>
  <li>Despite a dominant market position and a wide economic moat, Cisco faces challenges in its legacy Security and Collaboration segments, along with risks associated with macroeconomic shifts impacting IT spending, intense competition, and the successful integration of acquisitions.</li>
</ul><p><em>This content is AI-generated and displayed for general informational purposes only. Please verify independently before use.</em></p>


  Cisco is strategically pivoting from a hardware-centric model to a software and subscription-based platform, a move accelerated by its acquisition of Splunk to bolster its security and observability offerings.
  The company is capitalizing on the demand for AI infrastructure, securing significant orders from hyperscalers, which presents a major growth catalyst but also introduces margin pressures due to higher memory costs and product mix shifts.
  Despite a dominant market position and a wide economic moat, Cisco faces challenges in its legacy Security and Collaboration segments, along with risks associated with macroeconomic shifts impacting IT spending, intense competition, and the successful integration of acquisitions.
This content is AI-generated and displayed for general informational purposes only. Please verify independently before use.

Primer: Cisco Systems (CSCO US) - Aug 2026

Semiconductor & Technology Specialist, Ingenuity

William Keating

Semiconductor & Technology Specialist

Ingenuity

Our focus is exclusively on in-depth research & consulting in the broader semiconductor industry. We focus on the key players, namely Intel, Micron, Qualcomm, Apple, Samsung, NVIDIA, AMD, TSMC & Global Foundries - as well as some of the lesser known, but nonetheless critical, companies such as ASML (for EUV), Mellanox, Cavium, Xilinx etc. We specialise in their products, roadmaps, process technologies, competitive advantages & threats etc. We also help our clients understand the implications of new and emerging technologies, e.g. 3D X-Point, 3D NAND, Carbon Nanotubes, Autonomous Driving, Graphene, Silicon Photonics, Wafer-Level Optics, Artificial Intelligence, FPGA, GPU, ASIC etc. 

Semiconductor Analysis & Research

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>AMD &amp; NVIDIA both pocket deals to equip 500MW data centers in Saudi Arabia over the next 5 years. </li>
<li>UAE announced plans to build 5GW of data centre capacity with local champion G42 leading the charge. Microsoft and Cerebras were notable by their absence last week. </li>
<li>The Middle East deals are good news for US AI/Technology champions however the benefits will likely take years to fully accrue. </li>
</ul>


AMD &amp; NVIDIA both pocket deals to equip 500MW data centers in Saudi Arabia over the next 5 years. 
UAE announced plans to build 5GW of data centre capacity with local champion G42 leading the charge. Microsoft and Cerebras were notable by their absence last week. 
The Middle East deals are good news for US AI/Technology champions however the benefits will likely take years to fully accrue. 


US Middle East AI Splurge. A Bold Move But Also A Curious Affair

Quality-first, Business-perspective, Long-term, Urbem (HK) Limited

Urbem Capital

Quality-first, Business-perspective, Long-term

Quality-first, Business-perspective Strategy

Urbem (HK) Limited

Plover Bay Technologies / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Plover Bay compounded because a specialist technology capability, mission-critical customer problem and capital-light model reinforced one another far beyond the original 5G thesis.</li>
<li>Its less visible advantage was organizational: long-tenured technical leadership, small independent teams and rapid customer feedback enabled adaptation across successive connectivity technologies.</li>
<li>The next Plover Bay may emerge from any industry where a small, overlooked company combines niche leadership, superior learning speed, attractive economics and a long reinvestment runway.</li>
</ul>


Plover Bay compounded because a specialist technology capability, mission-critical customer problem and capital-light model reinforced one another far beyond the original 5G thesis.
Its less visible advantage was organizational: long-tenured technical leadership, small independent teams and rapid customer feedback enabled adaptation across successive connectivity technologies.
The next Plover Bay may emerge from any industry where a small, overlooked company combines niche leadership, superior learning speed, attractive economics and a long reinvestment runway.


The Making of a Multibagger: What Plover Bay Teaches Us About Finding the Next One

United States

Cisco Systems, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells Internet Protocol (IP)-based networking and other products related to the communications and information technology (IT) industry and provide services associated with these products and their use. The Company provides products for transporting data, voice, and video within buildings, across campuses, and globally.

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Cisco Systems (CSCO US)

Cisco's AI Orders Hit $9.3 Billion — A New Networking Powerhouse Emerges!

Cisco Systems delivered its strongest financial performance in 30 years during fiscal 2026, recording a 12% year-over-year revenue increase to...

Baptista Research

Global Income (Shariah) Portfolio (14-Sep-2026)

Dividends are a key component of overall returns. The strategy seeks to invest in high dividend and Shariah compliant stocks globally. By adopting...

Crea8

Primer: Cisco Systems (CSCO US) - Aug 2026

Cisco is strategically pivoting from a hardware-centric model to a software and subscription-based platform, a move accelerated by its...

αSK Primers

US Middle East AI Splurge. A Bold Move But Also A Curious Affair

Last week's Middle East deals are good news for US AI/Technology champions however the benefits will likely take years to fully accrue.

William Keating

The Making of a Multibagger: What Plover Bay Teaches Us About Finding the Next One

A six-year retrospective on why a tiny networking specialist compounded far beyond expectations—and which structural characteristics matter most...

Urbem Capital

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