CSCO - Cisco Systems, Inc.
56.60 -0.09 (-0.16%)
After hours: 7:59PM EDT
| Previous Close | 56.34 |
| Open | 56.43 |
| Bid | 56.48 x 3000 |
| Ask | 56.60 x 2900 |
| Day's Range | 56.20 - 56.69 |
| 52 Week Range | 40.25 - 57.53 |
| Volume | 18,796,598 |
| Avg. Volume | 20,117,461 |
| Market Cap | 249.551B |
| Beta (3Y Monthly) | 1.06 |
| PE Ratio (TTM) | 20.68 |
| EPS (TTM) | 2.74 |
| Earnings Date | May 15, 2019 |
| Forward Dividend & Yield | 1.40 (2.59%) |
| Ex-Dividend Date | 2019-04-04 |
| 1y Target Est | 55.63 |
- Zacks•4 hours ago
Cisco Systems (CSCO) Gains But Lags Market: What You Should Know
Cisco Systems (CSCO) closed the most recent trading day at $56.69, moving +0.62% from the previous trading session.
- Market Realist•7 hours ago
Will Arista Stock Rise Further in 2019?
Will Arista Network Continue to Beat Analysts' Estimates in Q1?(Continued from Prior Part)Wall Street’s optimism about Arista Networks Goldman Sachs (GS) upgraded Arista Networks (ANET) stock to a “conviction buy” last month. Deutsche Bank also
Market Realist•8 hours agoA Look at Arista’s Revenue and Earnings Growth in 2019 and Beyond
Will Arista Network Continue to Beat Analysts' Estimates in Q1?(Continued from Prior Part)Revenue growth for Arista estimated at 23.3%Arista Networks’ (ANET) revenue growth has been impressive in recent years. The company is operating in the
- Market Realist•10 hours ago
What Does Wall Street Expect from Arista Networks in Q1 2019?
Will Arista Network Continue to Beat Analysts' Estimates in Q1?Revenue growth of 25.9% Hardware communications company Arista Networks (ANET) is set to announce its first-quarter earnings results on May 2, 2019. Analysts expect the company to post
- Market Realist•15 hours ago
What Could Drive Proofpoint Stock Higher?
Will Proofpoint Continue to Beat Earnings Estimates in Q1?(Continued from Prior Part)Strong sales and earnings have resulted in impressive returns In the last five years, Proofpoint (PFPT) stock has risen ~320%. In comparison, its sales and earnings
- InvestorPlace•15 hours ago
Zoom Is A Great Company, But Post-IPO Pop Valuation Looks Full
A lot of companies have great starts on Wall Street. But, few have had as successful of a Wall Street debut as Zoom Video Communications (NASDAQ:ZM). ZM stock has been on a straight line up since its debut last week.The hyper-growth video conferencing company originally priced its IPO in the $28-$32 range. Investor demand was so high at those prices that the list price range for the Zoom IPO eventually moved north to $33-$35. The IPO was finally priced above that already-increased range, at $36. Then, Zoom stock soared more than 80% on its public debut to above $60. The stock kept moving higher the next day, and today, it trades at $67, nearly 90% above the already twice-boosted IPO price.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsWhy the huge demand? Plain and simple, Zoom is a great company. The company is in the right space, with 100%-plus revenue growth rates, a healthy long-term outlook, and sky high gross margins. Oh, and the company is already profitable, with only $330 million in revenue last year.All in all, Zoom is simply a really good company. The huge success of the Zoom IPO reflects that.But, Zoom was a hypothetical $30 stock a few days ago. Now, it's nearly a $70 stock. After such a huge rally, one has to look at the underlying fundamentals, and see if the valuation today is worth it.When you do that, it becomes obvious that ZM stock is very richly valued -- perhaps too richly valued. Even under aggressive long-term growth assumptions, I think today's valuation is slightly stretched. While the Zoom IPO was a huge success because its a great company, I'm in no rush to buy Zoom stock today. Instead, I think there's a pullback coming around the corner and investors can afford to wait for better entry points. Zoom Is A Great CompanyIn a nutshell, Zoom is a great company oozing with long-term profit growth potential, and that's why the IPO was so successful.First and foremost, the company is in the right space. Video conferencing is a huge growth market in the enterprise world. There are so many tailwinds at play here. The enterprise world is more connected than ever, and as such, communication between offices around the globe is not only possible, but necessary. Video is considered the tool-of-choice when it comes to digital communication.Further, you have this massive shift from on-site work to remote work, which has been enabled by technology trends and empowered by the gig economy. Also, employee work forces are getting younger, and as a result, want to see all these up-and-coming trends play out at the office. * 5 Dividend Stocks Perfect for Retirees Second, Zoom is a leader in that market with rapidly expanding market share. Next to Cisco (NYSE:CSCO) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Zoom is the other large player in the video conferencing market. But, the company has grown revenue at a consistent 100%-plus rate for several quarters. If the company keeps that up, Zoom will be the number one player in this market soon.Third, Zoom has sky-high gross margins. For the past several years, gross margins have hovered around 80%, and management's made gradual improvements. These robust gross margins allow for robust profit potential at scale.Fourth, Zoom is already profitable. Unlike other hyper-growth companies, Zoom isn't spending an arm and a leg to sustain that big growth. Instead, the company's opex rate sits below 80%. With gross margins around 80%, that combination produced profits last year. The Valuation Is StretchedAlthough Zoom is a great company with a ton of long-term potential, it increasingly looks like that all that potential is more than priced into the stock today.Consider this: The Zoom IPO was supposed to price around $30 per share. Today, the stock trades near $70. That's a 100%-plus increase in just a few days and it's stayed there. For most stocks, such a move higher absent a monumental catalyst would be a sure-fire sign of overbought conditions. Investors aren't applying the same logic to the Zoom IPO because it's an IPO. But, my numbers say they should.The video conferencing market measured roughly $11 billion in 2017. With revenue of $150 million, Zoom had just over 1% market share. That market share grew in 2018, likely to somewhere around 3% (assuming the video conferencing market grew at the projected 10% rate). Over time, as Zoom continues to prove out its competitive advantages, the company should continue to expand its foot print. From this perspective, I think 10-15% market share by 2025 is very doable.Current estimates peg the video conferencing market at $20 billion by then. That seems light to me. IDC forecast the unified communications and collaboration market as being worth nearly $45 billion over the next few years, and video should command the lion's share of that market given secular trends towards video adoption. As such, I think video conferencing will measure closer to a $30 billion market by 2025.A 10-15% market share on that implies $3.75 billion in revenue, at the midpoint, by 2025. Assuming 85% gross margins and a fairly regular 40% opex rate, that flows into roughly $1.7 billion in operating profits. Taking out 20% for taxes, you're left with $1.35 billion in net profits. Based on a growth average 20x forward multiple, that implies a reasonable 2024 valuation target of $27 billion. Discounted back by 10% per year, that equates to a 2019 market cap of just under $17 billion. * 10 S&P 500 Stocks to Weather the Earnings Storm That's roughly the market cap of Zoom today, and it's April 2019. As such, upside in the near term seems limited by a stretched valuation. Bottom Line on the Zoom IPOTo recap, the Zoom IPO was a huge success because Zoom is a great company, and at $30 per share, the stock was way undervalued considering the company's long-term growth potential.But, after a huge IPO pop, Zoom stock now seems fully valued. Near-term upside is capped by what is already a stretched valuation. As such, while ZM stock is a long-term holding, investors can afford to wait for better prices to enter for that long haul.As of this writing, Luke Lango did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 7 Tech Stocks With Too Much Risk, Not Enough Upside * 7 Companies That Are Closing the CEO-Worker Wage Gap * 7 Video Game ETFs That Will Make You a Winner Compare Brokers The post Zoom Is A Great Company, But Post-IPO Pop Valuation Looks Full appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- American City Business Journals•yesterday
Zoom Video's $16B idea was born in founder's student days in native China
Eric Yuan, Silicon Valley's newest billionaire tech founder and 48-year-old founder of San Jose-based Zoom, spent more than half his life in his native China, emigrating at age 27 after winning a visa to the U.S. on his ninth try in two years. Today, Yuan's Chinese connections continue to be a major part of the Zoom story.
- InvestorPlace•yesterday
Lyft and Zoom Offer Lessons for IPO Investors
The initial public offering (IPO) of Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) is reading like a classic venture capital "down round," in which new capital is raised at valuations lower than in the previous round.Source: ZoomShares that launched at over $83 each less than one month ago are trading at around $58 each on Monday. That's a 30% haircut.This doesn't bode well for Uber Technologies, which issued its S-1 April 11 and is now trying to convince people its stock is worth buying. Uber's most recent private capital raise was also a classic "down round," with Softbank buying about 20% of existing equity at a valuation of $48 billion.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsBut things don't have to be that way. Why Zoom ZoomedZoom Video Communications (NASDAQ:ZM) broke fast out of the gates after listing shares at $36 each on April 18. They were trading at $65 on Monday. * 7 Tech Stocks With Too Much Risk, Not Enough Upside Zoom's S-1 showed it making money for the fiscal year ending in January, 3 cents per share on revenue of $330.5 million. The April 22 valuation of nearly $16 billion looks rich, but Zoom's revenues more than doubled between 2018 and 2019, rising faster than expenses. If Zoom continues to grow, in other words, it should be a profit-making machine.Zoom CEO Eric Yuan also provided an attractive cover story, that of a Chinese-born former Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) engineer beating his former employer with a "freemium" model, built entirely in the cloud.Before coming public, Zoom had just five funding rounds, the last bringing in $115 million. While videoconferencing is established as a technology, researchers see its growth continuing, approaching $14 billion in four years. Why Lyft FailedLyft, by contrast, issued an S-1 that was big on promises, but even bigger on losses. Like Zoom, its revenue doubled in the year before going public, but expenses nearly did too. The company reported a 2018 loss of $43.04 per share, on revenues of $2.16 billion after losing $35.53 per share on 2017 revenue of $1.06 billion, and $37.08 per share on revenue of $343 million the year before.Lyft claimed a valuation of $11 billion when it raised $1 billion in cash late in 2017, raised capital twice more in 2018 and carried a market cap of under $16 billion early on April 22.Ride-hailing is great in theory, but in practice it's a taxi, one without a license beyond the driver's license and organized online. That's why Lyft is promoting other forms of mobility, without drivers, like scooters and bikes. That's why Lyft bulls are talking about self-driving cars. The gig economy is not where you want to place your bets when unemployment is below 4%, and Lyft insists its drivers don't really have jobs , The Bottom LineThere are two important lessons here for cloud investors.First, you don't want to buy something that doesn't make money. Zoom makes money. Lyft does not make money.Second, if you're buying technology, it should be self-service. Zoom's technology is self-service, and the price starts at free. Lyft technology is not self-service, even bikes have liability issues and its vision of making transportation "people-centric" is still vaporware.Zoom went public, in other words, because it could offer public investors a good opportunity. Lyft went public because it had run out of private investors to fleece.The short version is this. Buy Google, not Webvan.Dana Blankenhorn is a financial and technology journalist. He is the author of a new mystery thriller, The Reluctant Detective Finds Her Family, available now at the Amazon Kindle store. Write him at danablankenhorn@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter at @danablankenhorn. As of this writing he owned no shares in companies mentioned in this article. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 7 Tech Stocks With Too Much Risk, Not Enough Upside * 7 Companies That Are Closing the CEO-Worker Wage Gap * 7 Video Game ETFs That Will Make You a Winner Compare Brokers The post Lyft and Zoom Offer Lessons for IPO Investors appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- TheStreet.com•yesterday
Zoom CFO Discusses Firm's IPO, Growth Strategy, M&A and More
After pricing its IPO at $36 -- above a raised price range of $33 to $35 -- Zoom opened at $65.00 and closed at $62.36. The first-day jump left Zoom valued at about $18.1 billion after accounting for outstanding stock options. Shortly after Zoom began trading, I had a chance to talk with CFO Kelly Steckelberg about Zoom's long-term strategy and post-IPO plans.
- Zacks•yesterday
Emissions Solutions, AutoNation, Xilinx, Cisco Systems and Qorvo highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day
Emissions Solutions, AutoNation, Xilinx, Cisco Systems and Qorvo highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day
- InvestorPlace•2 days ago
After an Impressive Run, Cisco Stock Is Starting to Cool Off
So far 2019 has been spectacular for Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO). Cisco stock has risen 30% this year. That's the best performance in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, narrowly ahead of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). Among the 27 stocks with a market capitalization over $200 billion, only Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) has outpaced CSCO stock YTD.Source: Shutterstock The optimism makes some sense. Cisco's legacy networking business long has struggled with growth, but the company is shifting into areas of better growth. It's becoming more of a security play, giving it exposure to that hot sector. Growing recurring revenue from increasing software sales add to the case, and 5G offers yet another catalyst for Cisco stock.Again, the optimism here makes some sense. Indeed, I laid out the potential bull case for CSCO ahead of its fiscal first quarter report. But with Cisco stock up 25%+ since then, the concern is that even that bull case now is priced in.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips * 5 Dividend Stocks Perfect for Retirees The Cisco Stock RallyFrom a broad standpoint, there are four key drivers of the big gains in Cisco stock. First, the company's Catalyst 9000 switches have launched well, driving double-digit revenue increases. For a company that has struggled to increase sales (fiscal 2018 revenue was basically equal to FY16 levels) the new product is welcome, to say the least.Second, Cisco is adding more software to its legacy hardware products, including the Catalyst switches. That shift improves margins and adds the recurring revenue tech investors seek these days. It also allows Cisco to continue to monetize its hardware after installation, instead of receiving just a one-time sale.Third, the company continues to move into security. Like more focused players like Palo Alto Networks (NYSE:PANW), here, too, Cisco has built out its software offering instead of focusing on just hardware. Cisco has integrated its SD-WAN products with cloud-based software, which drove double-digit growth in the second quarter.Finally, 5G is on the way, and that represents a real profit driver going forward. The adoption of that technology should help revenue, but Cisco already is investing in its development at the moment, meaning incremental costs should be lower.Obviously, there are other factors at play; this is a company that generates revenue of roughly $50 billion a year. These areas are where Cisco has an edge and an opportunity to accelerate revenue growth. Smaller rival Juniper Networks (NYSE:JNPR) hasn't had the same success, and while CSCO stock has soared, JNPR has been flat for basically four years now. Cisco's moves explain much of the outperformance of its stock. The Concerns with CSCO StockIn sum, the moves make Cisco sound a bit like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) earlier this decade. Microsoft had similar growth questions, and relied on a legacy market (personal computers) that seemed to have little room for growth.Then new businesses like its Azure cloud platform, a go-to-market change for Office and Windows, and smaller efforts in gaming and hardware have dramatically changed the story. MSFT has more than quadrupled since 2013, thanks to earnings growth and multiple expansion.That said, there are two concerns here. The first is whether the Microsoft model actually is in play here. While there are growth opportunities going forward (perhaps most notably in 5G) the legacy business still is flat, if not shrinking. Security was just 6% of revenue in fiscal 2018, according to figures from the 10-K. Cisco itself is guiding for just 4-6% revenue growth in the third quarter.Growth might be improving, but it's not exactly torrid and certainly not yet. Meanwhile, Cisco stock's big rise has notably changed its valuation. As recently as last year, CSCO was pricing in basically zero growth.Now, Cisco stock trades at over 18x FY19 consensus EPS. Even with the Street projecting 10% growth in FY20, that's not a hugely attractive multiple. It suggests, at the least, that Cisco's recent success will continue for years to come. And it's worth noting that Cisco stock now has outrun the average analyst target.To be sure, that doesn't mean CSCO's run is definitely over or that the stock is a sell. Strong Q3 earnings, likely due next month, can lead those estimates and price targets up. The advent of 5G probably starts contributing next year, and its growth won't end any time soon.Still, the upside looks thinner, and Cisco really can't stumble back at a high-teen P/E multiple. Investors sticking with CSCO at this price had better be sure the transformation will continue.As of this writing, Vince Martin has no positions in any securities mentioned. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 5 Dividend Stocks Perfect for Retirees * 7 Reasons the Stock Market Rally Isn't Over Yet * 10 S&P 500 Stocks to Weather the Earnings Storm Compare Brokers The post After an Impressive Run, Cisco Stock Is Starting to Cool Off appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- TheStreet.com•3 days ago
Ask Cramer: Cisco vs. CVS, Which Stock is Better for Your Portfolio?
Should investors consider adding Cisco to their portfolio? Jim Cramer weighs in TheStreet's new video segment, #AskCramer
- Simply Wall St.•3 days ago
Is Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) Expensive For A Reason? A Look At Its Intrinsic Value
Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) by taking the foreast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. This is done using the...
- Moody's•4 days ago
Synamedia Americas Holdings, Inc. -- Moody's downgrades Synamedia's CFR to Caa1; outlook stable
Synamedia's near-term financial performance has been adversely impacted by continued revenue declines as well as by complications in the separation from Cisco. Moody's expects breakeven free cash flow over the next 12 to 18 months, with some possibility of a modest cash burn.
- CNBC•5 days ago
Zoom's CEO emigrated from China 22 years ago and spoke little English — now he's worth almost $3 billion
Eric Yuan started Zoom in 2011 after helping build WebEx, which Cisco bought for $3.2 billion. After Thursday's market debut, Yuan's stake in Zoom is worth $2.9 billion. In 2018, he was named Glassdoor's big company CEO of the year, with a 99% approval rating from employees.
- CNBC•5 days ago
Zoom's CEO emigrated from China 22 years ago and spoke little English — now he's worth almost $3 billion
Eric Yuan started Zoom in 2011 after helping build WebEx. His company is now worth $15.9 billion after its IPO, and Yuan owns about 20%.
- TheStreet.com•5 days ago
Jim Cramer: Zoom, Pinterest and the Irrational Exuberance of This Market
Do you really want to pay 50 times last year's sales for Zoom , a video conferencing company, one that is second-banana in share to Cisco ? Does that make sense? The answer is no. And it is worrisome.
- Investor's Business Daily•5 days ago
Check Point Earnings Edge Past Estimates, Cybersecurity Stock Falls
Check Point Software Technologies reported slim earnings and revenue growth that narrowly topped views for the first quarter. Shares of the firewall software maker fell in early trading.
- American City Business Journals•5 days ago
Zoom CEO says IPO is like a high school graduation: Lots of work ahead yet
A tireless evangelist for his company's cloud-based conferencing technology, Eric Yuan used Zoom video throughout the IPO process, as well as on IPO day. Here's what he and his CFO said about the experience of the past two weeks.
- Zacks•5 days ago
F5 Networks (FFIV) to Post Q2 Earnings: What's in the Cards?
F5 Networks' (FFIV) fiscal Q2 results are expected to benefit from growth in its software solutions. However, margins are likely to be under pressure due to higher spending on cloud and security.
- Zacks•5 days ago
5G Chipset Market Humming: 3 Solid Buys
5G commercialization will be a starting point for its chipset market's growth.
- InvestorPlace•6 days ago
Avoid Twilio Stock As Long As Valuations Remain Stratospheric
The premium on Twilio (NYSE:TWLO) continues to increasingly draw attention. Despite warnings about valuation coming from multiple quarters, Twilio stock has recovered quickly from all of its temporary pullbacks over the last 16 months. Consequently, this has taken TWLO stock to multiples that worry investors not typically concerned with value.With any path to higher stock prices becoming more unpredictable, investors should avoid this equity for now. Trading on Vision PremiumTwilio has come to dominate the platform-as-a-service (PaaS) market. Given that so many mobile apps rely on the company's product, the company appears poised to become one of the more essential tech firms. The upshot is that Twilio stock trades with what I call a "vision premium" -- that is, companies that bring cutting-edge technologies and trade on potential future earnings rather than the multiples of today.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading TipsTwilio's vision premium has taken its forward price-to-earnings (PE) to an astronomical 437 times earnings. As a result, both my InvestorPlace peers and I have cautioned traders not to buy at these levels. * 10 S&P 500 Stocks to Weather the Earnings Storm Admittedly, Twilio dominates the PaaS niche. Also, the fact that Twilio stock has become very expensive will not necessarily take the shares down. Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) moved higher for years despite supporting triple-digit PE ratios at times.My colleague Bret Kenwell calls TWLO stock a "buy on any pullback." He points to several instances where buying at near-term bottoms led to massive profits. This thesis may continue to prove correct. Voting, Weighing and Twilio StockUnfortunately, when a stock trades well into triple-digit multiples, "predicting" begins and ends with the limits of charting. Moreover, when looking at this, I find myself turning to a quote from Warren Buffett's mentor, Benjamin Graham."In the short run, the market is a voting machine, but in the long run, it is a weighing machine."The "weighty" factors which could affect Twilio stock extend beyond the fact that TWLO trades at about 23.4x sales and more than 28x its book value. We also trade in the 11th year of a bull market, making a stock selloff more likely. With no fundamentals to support its value, Twilio might bear the brunt of such a downturn.Also, traders should consider the history of past tech leaders. Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) lost about 90% of its value after becoming one of the more popular tech equities of the dot-com boom. Assuming a company survives such a stock loss, the effects of these high valuations can also last for decades. Cisco still has not recovered its 2000 high more than 19 years after the dot-com bubble reached its peak. Many high-flying tech stocks have and will continue to face similar situations. Competitive Threats RemainMoreover, while Twilio has become the dominant PaaS company, competitors such as Zendesk (NYSE:ZEN) and RingCentral (NYSE:RNG) do exist. These PaaS providers hurt Twilio stock last year when Uber announced that they would look at other PaaS companies. Twilio stock recovered when the company expanded its product and service offerings. However, TWLO could face further trouble if large, deep-pocketed cloud companies such as Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) or Amazon decide to compete in this space. * 7 High-Risk Stocks With Big Potential Rewards As things stand now, Twilio stock trades at about 9.6% below its 52-week high. A move higher remains possible. Still, considering its situation, I see more factors that could bring about a pullback than inspire a recovery. Bottom Line on Twilio StockTwilio stock lacks a predictable path to further share price increases in the near term. Given that valuation has not influenced the price of TWLO, it could rise from these levels. For now, TWLO stock commands a vision premium, and the likelihood that it will dominate this up-and-coming industry drives this stock for now. Still, at some point, valuation matters. With forward PE ratios well into the triple digits, TWLO appears more likely to attract more weight than votes.As of this writing, Will Healy did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned stocks. You can follow Will on Twitter at @HealyWriting. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 7 Stocks to Buy for Spring Season Growth * This Is How You Beat Back a Bear Market * 7 Dental Stocks to Buy That Will Make You Smile Compare Brokers The post Avoid Twilio Stock As Long As Valuations Remain Stratospheric appeared first on InvestorPlace.
- American City Business Journals•6 days ago
Zoom tops IPO targets, raising $357M at a valuation of $9.2B
Including sales by the San Jose company's shareholders and private placements to underwriters and Salesforce Ventures, more than $950 million in Zoom stock could change hands in the offering.
- Market Realist•6 days ago
FireEye Is Trading at a 26% Discount to Average Analyst Estimates
How Are Cybersecurity Stocks Trading Compared to Valuations?(Continued from Prior Part)Stock returns Cybersecurity (HACK) stock FireEye (FEYE) has taken investors on a volatile ride over the last few years. The stock generated returns of -16% in the
- InvestorPlace•6 days ago
6 Big Growth ETFs for Long-Term Investors
The birth of exchange-traded funds over the past several years has led to the birth of thematic stock investing, and that's a good thing. Specifically, ETFs -- through diversification -- allow investors to invest in themes, not stocks. This reduces the risks inherent in picking a single winner in an industry, while still giving investors exposure to the upside throughout the entire industry.In other words, thematic investing through ETFs is a great way to simultaneously reduce risk and maintain solid upside exposure.The key with ETFs, of course, is to pick the right ones. As opposed to picking the right stock, investors have to pick the right theme. This is easier to do than picking the right stock and the right theme. But, it still requires ample due diligence.InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips * 10 Best Stocks to Buy and Hold Forever With that in mind, let's take a look six big growth ETFs investors should consider if they are looking to invest in tomorrow's most important themes. First Trust Nasdaq Cybersecurity ETF (CIBR)The Big Idea: The value of cybersecurity will only dramatically rise in an increasingly digitally connected world.Key Holdings: Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO), Fortinet (NASDAQ:FTNT), Palo Alto Networks (NYSE:PANW), Splunk (NASDAQ:SPLK) and Okta (NASDAQ:OKTA)Thanks to the widespread proliferation of the internet and rise of things like AI, IoT and the cloud, the consumer and enterprise worlds are becoming more digitally connected than ever before. Ostensibly, this is a good thing. But, we've been reminded recently of the downfalls of this unprecedented connection through various hacks and data security breaches. Broadly speaking, everyone and every company's data is running around on the internet, and that presents huge risks for both the individual and the enterprise.Cybersecurity solutions protect against these risks. Over time, as the world becomes more digitally connected, these risks will only grow. As they do, the value of protecting against these risks will grow, too. Consequently, the outlook for the whole cybersecurity space to rise dramatically in value over the next several years is favorable. That's why the First Trust Nasdaq Cybersecurity ETF (NASDAQ:CIBR) looks like a solid long-term holding. First Trust Cloud Computing ETF (SKY)The Big Idea: Everything is going to cloud, and as it does, the companies that provide cloud-based services will grow tremendously.Key Holdings: VMWare (NYSE:VMW), Salesforce (NASDAQ:CRM), Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX), Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)Technology used to be delivered and stored on-premise. That is, you used to buy software at a store, bring it home or to the office, download it and use it on-site, with all the operations, data and workflow hosted on-site. Over the past several years, this process has changed thanks to the cloud. Now, there's no need to go to a store and buy anything. Services are delivered directly through and stored in the cloud, and this removes frictions related to on-premise delivery and storage. * 10 S&P 500 Stocks to Weather the Earnings Storm This revolution is well underway. That's why the First Trust Cloud Computing ETF (NASDAQ:SKYY), which focuses on companies that deliver cloud-based services, is up more than 100% over the past three years. But, only 20% of enterprise workloads have migrated to the cloud. At scale, that number will be closer to 100%. Thus, we are only one-fifth of the way through the cloud growth narrative, and that means SKYY still has lots of runway left to head even higher in the long run. iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (IGV)The Big Idea: Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) stocks are winning investments, and this ETF gives you broad exposure to the world's best SaaS stocks.Key Holdings: Microsoft, Salesforce, Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE), ServiceNow (NYSE:NOW) and Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK)SaaS stocks are winning stocks. Broadly speaking, these are high-growth companies with robust exposure to the cloud and software revolutions. They're also high-margin companies since costs associated with delivering cloud-hosted solutions at scale are relatively small. Further, they are often supported by steady and predictable revenue streams, which gives investors confidence regarding go-forward operational stability. Because of these winning attributes, the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF (NYSE:IGV) is up 115% over the past three years.This big rally will continue. As stated earlier, only 20% of workloads have migrated to the cloud, so revenue growth potential remains huge. Plus, margins have lots of room to expand as the industry matures, and revenue predictability will likewise improve with scale. Overall, then, the three big tailwinds which have produced huge gains in IGV will persist for the foreseeable future, and that means that this big rally is far from over. Global Robotics and Automation Index ETF (ROBO)The Big Idea: The robots are coming, and companies that provide automation technology and services will profit tremendously in the long run.Key Holdings: Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), Zebra (NASDAQ:ZBRA), Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG), Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) and iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT)One of the biggest trends over the next several years will be automation. Specifically, automated technologies will continue to get better and better, until they are good enough to largely replace human labor in many parts of the workforce. That's not great news for the labor market. But, it is great news for the companies that are leading this automation revolution, like Intuitive Surgical -- the company that is putting robots in the surgery room -- and iRobot -- the company that is putting robots in your house to clean your floors. * 7 Stocks to Buy for Spring Season Growth All of these leading automation companies are packaged into the Global Robotics and Automation Index ETF (NYSE:ROBO). As such, as the automation trends gain mainstream traction over the next decade, the ROBO ETF will explode higher alongside all the important automation stocks. Amplify Online Retail ETF (IBUY)The Big Idea: E-commerce is still in the early stages of a multi-year secular growth narrative, and e-commerce companies will continue to grow at a rapid rate for the foreseeable future.Key Holdings: Amazon, Wayfair (NYSE:W), Chegg (NYSE:CHGG), Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) and PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL)One of the biggest growth narratives over the past several years has been the rapid rise in e-commerce. Companies like Amazon, Wayfair and Etsy have pioneered of new of era shopping from the comfort of your own home, and in so doing, have stolen tremendous market share from traditional retailers. Consequently, all those stocks have soared, as has the Amplify Online Retail ETF (NASDAQ:IBUY).These gains will continue. At the present moment, e-commerce sales represent just over 10% of total retail sales in the U.S. That's still a relatively small piece of the pie. Further, the whole industry continues to grow at a healthy double-digit rate. Thus, it increasingly appears as though we are still in the early stage of e-commerce's long-term growth narrative. As that narrative plays out over the next several years, the IBUY ETF will continue to rise. ETFMG Prime Mobile Payments ETF (IPAY)The Big Idea: Digital payments, and specifically mobile payments, are gaining massive traction, and the companies behind these payments project as big growers.Core Holdings: PayPal, Mastercard (NYSE:MA), Visa (NYSE:V), Square (NYSE:SQ) and American Express (NYSE:AXP)As digital shopping has grown, so has the digital payments world. When you shop online, you can't pay for an item with cash. You have to use a card or a digital payment account. Thus, cash has become less prevalent throughout the economy over the past several years, while digital payments have become more prevalent. This has led to huge gains in digital payment stocks like Master, Visa and Square, as well as in the Prime Mobile Payments ETF (NASDAQ:IPAY). * 7 Dental Stocks to Buy That Will Make You Smile As stated earlier, e-commerce sales only represent 10% of total retail sales, so that growth narrative is far from over. Consequently, the parallel digital payments growth narrative is likewise far from over. Specifically, within the digital payments world, we are going to see a huge rise in mobile commerce over the next several years as mobile-first apps like Instagram dive deeper into shopping. All of this implies big growth ahead for digital payments stocks and the IPAY ETF.As of this writing, Luke Lango was long PANW, CIBR, CRM, NFLX, AMZN, ADBE, NOW, ROBO, CHGG, PYPL and SQ. More From InvestorPlace * 2 Toxic Pot Stocks You Should Avoid * 7 Stocks to Buy for Spring Season Growth * This Is How You Beat Back a Bear Market * 7 Dental Stocks to Buy That Will Make You Smile Compare Brokers The post 6 Big Growth ETFs for Long-Term Investors appeared first on InvestorPlace.
