Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Intuitive Surgical from “hold” to “buy.” Overall analyst sentiment is “Moderate Buy,” with 22 buy ratings, eight holds and one sell rating, and an average price target of $508.68.
• Intuitive Surgical reported quarterly earnings of $2.80 per share, exceeding the $2.48 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 18.4% year over year to $2.89 billion.
• ISRG shares opened at $369.15, well below their 52-week high of $603.88. Insiders sold 11,281 shares worth approximately $4.48 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own 83.64% of the company.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

ISRG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Evercore set a $430.00 price objective on Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and set a $487.00 price objective (down from $654.00) on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Oppenheimer upgraded Intuitive Surgical from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $500.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Mizuho set a $500.00 target price on Intuitive Surgical and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $520.00 to $515.00 in a report on Friday, June 12th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Intuitive Surgical presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $508.68.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Performance

Shares of ISRG opened at $369.15 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $376.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $423.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $130.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.47. Intuitive Surgical has a 52 week low of $328.57 and a 52 week high of $603.88.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.32. Intuitive Surgical had a net margin of 28.45% and a return on equity of 16.91%. The business had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Intuitive Surgical will post 8.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Gary Loeb sold 400 shares of Intuitive Surgical stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $379.00, for a total transaction of $151,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,320 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,016,280. This trade represents a 6.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Mark Brosius sold 77 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $375.57, for a total transaction of $28,918.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 881 shares in the company, valued at approximately $330,877.17. This trade represents a 8.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 11,281 shares of company stock worth $4,484,224 over the last 90 days. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Main Street Group LTD bought a new stake in Intuitive Surgical during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Intuitive Surgical in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Intuitive Surgical by 58.1% in the 1st quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Intuitive Surgical in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Intuitive Surgical in the first quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 83.64% of the company's stock.

Intuitive Surgical Company Profile

Intuitive Surgical, Inc is a medical technology company that develops and manufactures robotic-assisted surgical systems and related products. Its technology is designed to support surgeons during minimally invasive procedures by providing enhanced visualization, instrument control and dexterity.

The company's principal product is the da Vinci Surgical System, which is used across a range of specialties, including general surgery, urology, gynecology, cardiothoracic surgery and other procedures.

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