Wall Street Zen Upgrades Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) to Buy

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $550.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “sell” rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $595.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Truist Financial set a $620.00 price objective on shares of Intuitive Surgical and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Intuitive Surgical from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Intuitive Surgical presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $603.38.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Up 0.9%

ISRG opened at $551.25 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $459.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $497.31. Intuitive Surgical has a twelve month low of $425.00 and a twelve month high of $616.00. The company has a market capitalization of $197.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.92, a PEG ratio of 5.02 and a beta of 1.61.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 21st. The medical equipment provider reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.41. Intuitive Surgical had a net margin of 28.58% and a return on equity of 15.08%. The company had revenue of $2.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.84 EPS. Intuitive Surgical’s revenue was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Intuitive Surgical will post 6.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Intuitive Surgical

In other news, Director Amy L. Ladd sold 335 shares of Intuitive Surgical stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.69, for a total transaction of $147,631.15. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $325,669.91. The trade was a 31.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO David J. Rosa sold 24,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $547.55, for a total transaction of $13,414,975.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 234,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $128,266,872.80. This trade represents a 9.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 88,324 shares of company stock valued at $46,093,939. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intuitive Surgical

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Chilton Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 614.3% during the 1st quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 50 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Tobam grew its position in Intuitive Surgical by 666.7% during the second quarter. Tobam now owns 46 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Elite Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Kilter Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 83.64% of the company’s stock.

About Intuitive Surgical

Intuitive Surgical, Inc develops, manufactures, and markets products that enable physicians and healthcare providers to enhance the quality of and access to minimally invasive care in the United States and internationally. The company offers the da Vinci Surgical System that enables complex surgery using a minimally invasive approach; and Ion endoluminal system, which extends its commercial offerings beyond surgery into diagnostic procedures enabling minimally invasive biopsies in the lung.