Is Cisco Hoarding Cash to Buy VMware?

Valentine's Day may still be a few days away, but Cisco may be angling for a more meaningful relationship with virtualization powerhouse VMware.

According to a Reuters news story by Anupreeta Das, Cisco is reportedly hoarding cash in preparation for some potential acquisitions, and Cisco's long-running infatuation with VMware has led some to speculate that a Cisco-VMware merger could be in the cards. Any deal with VMware would have to involve VMware parent company EMC, as EMC wisely purchased VMware way back in 2003.

Cisco announced back on February 9 that it was raising $4 billion in cash by essentially taking out a loan for what it described as "general corporate purposes." Peter Burrows over at BusinessWeek.com has outlined some potential acquisition targets for the newly-flush Cisco, with NetApp, EMC, and VMware at the top of his list.

So what do you think? Will Cisco gobble up VMware, EMC, NetApp, or some other technology vendor? Add a comment to this blog post or drop me an email with your thoughts.