Common-Size Income Statement
Cisco Systems Inc., common-size consolidated income statement
Based on: 10-K (reporting date: 2025-07-26), 10-K (reporting date: 2024-07-27), 10-K (reporting date: 2023-07-29), 10-K (reporting date: 2022-07-30), 10-K (reporting date: 2021-07-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2020-07-25).
- Revenue Composition
- The proportion of revenue attributable to product sales consistently remains larger than that from services, fluctuating near the mid-70s percentile. It increased gradually from 72.98% in 2020 to a peak of 75.69% in 2023, but then slightly declined to 73.44% by 2025. Conversely, services revenue showed an opposite trend, dipping from 27.02% in 2020 to a low of 24.31% in 2023 before recovering marginally to 26.56% in 2025.
- Profitability of Product and Service Segments
- Gross margin contributions from product sales became slightly more negative, deepening from -26.77% in 2020 to approximately -29.11% in 2023, then improving modestly to about -26.69% in 2025. Similar patterns are observed for services, though at lower absolute levels, with margins ranging from -8.96% to -8.17%, then marginally increasing to -8.37% by 2025. Overall cost of sales as a percentage of revenue increased until 2022–2023, peaking near 37.45%, followed by a reduction to roughly 35.06% in 2025, indicating some cost control efforts.
- Gross Margin Trends
- Gross margin relative to total revenue decreased from 64.26% in 2020 to a trough of 62.55% in 2022 but subsequently improved, reaching nearly 64.94% in 2025. This suggests an initial erosion of profit margins at the gross level, with recovery in the last two years of the period.
- Operating Expenses
- Operating expenses show a noticeable increase over time. Research and development consistently rose as a percentage of revenue, from -12.87% in 2020 to -16.42% by 2025, highlighting increased investment in innovation or product development. Sales and marketing expenses hovered around -18% to -19.3%, with a step-up after 2023. General and administrative costs also increased from -3.9% to -5.28%, indicating rising overheads. Amortization of purchased intangible assets exhibited growth in expense, notably jumping to -1.81% in 2025 from below -0.5% in preceding years. Restructuring and other charges fluctuated without a clear trend but remained below -1.5%. Aggregated operating expenses increased from roughly -36.64% in 2020 to a peak of -44.18% in 2025, reflecting significant pressure on operating efficiency.
- Operating Income
- Operating income as a percentage of revenue declined steadily over the six-year span, from 27.63% in 2020 down to 20.76% by 2025, suggesting that increased operating costs outpaced growth in gross margin.
- Net Interest and Other Income
- Interest income displayed some variability but mostly remained within 1% to 2.5% of revenue, peaking in 2024. Interest expense decreased initially but increased materially from 2024 onwards, reaching -2.81% in 2025, possibly impacting net profitability. Other income (loss) showed volatile small values, slightly negative in the last years, resulting in a negative overall impact on net interest and other income by 2025.
- Income Before Taxes and Tax Provision
- Income before tax generally mirrored operating income trends, decreasing from 28.34% in 2020 to 19.59% in 2025. However, the provision for income taxes diminished substantially, dropping from -5.59% in 2020 to -1.62% by 2025, indicating either improved tax efficiency or tax strategy changes.
- Net Income
- Net income as a percentage of revenue contracted from 22.75% in 2020 to 17.97% in 2025, reflecting a combination of margin pressure, increased operating expenses, and rising interest costs despite tax provision reductions. This overall profitability decline underscores challenges in maintaining earnings in light of higher expenses and interest outflows.