Having acquired the security firm Sourcefire last October, Cisco is using this week's RSA Conference as the showcase for how Cisco's security products are being integrated as well as detailing how it will cut an open-source path for the next-generation application-layer firewall/IPS.
It's interesting how the tech industry works. In late 2011, Cisco was in the midst of revamping itself, its stock was a shade under $14/share, and its investors calling for CEO John Chambers to resign. Today, as Mike Reno from Loverboy used to sing, “The kid is hot tonight, whoa, so hot tonight.” Indeed, Mr. Chambers is on quite a roll, Cisco stock is a shade under $26/share, investors are happy, the entire network product line has been revamped in the past year, and the company is creating some distance between itself and its network completion.
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) and Sourcefire (NASDAQ: FIRE) today announced a definitive agreement for Cisco to acquire Sourcefire, a leader in intelligent cybersecurity solutions. Cisco and Sourcefire will combine their world-class products, technologies and research teams to provide continuous and pervasive advanced threat protection across the entire attack continuum -- before, during and after an attack -- and from any device to any cloud.
Sourcefire's (FIRE) third-quarter earnings report, delayed by Hurricane Sandy until Thursday morning, will hit the market at a choppy time for tech security stocks. That's especially true for network security stocks like Sourcefire.
With the S&P 500 index flat from Friday, IBD's Computer Software-Security industry group is down 2% as of Wednesday afternoon pre-close. Markets were shuttered Monday and Tuesday due to the storm, and several companies rescheduled quarterly earnings reports.
SourceFire (FIRE) stock was trading up 26% by late afternoon Wednesday after the security firm reported a strong quarter and outlook late Tuesday.
