Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Acquires 887 Shares of Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG)

Key Points

• Empirical Wealth Management increased its stake in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. by 44.4%, holding a total of 2,887 shares valued at approximately $1.43 million.
• Insider selling activity was noted as Myriam Curet and Gary S. Guthart sold a combined total of 15,903 shares worth nearly $7.93 million in recent transactions.
• Intuitive Surgical's stock is currently trading around $483.12 with a recent earnings per share of $2.19, surpassing analyst expectations.

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG - Free Report) by 44.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,887 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 887 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management's holdings in Intuitive Surgical were worth $1,430,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ISRG. Chilton Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 614.3% in the 1st quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 50 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Intuitive Surgical during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Global Financial Private Client LLC boosted its position in Intuitive Surgical by 253.3% during the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 53 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Intuitive Surgical during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in Intuitive Surgical during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 83.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ISRG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Erste Group Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $470.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Intuitive Surgical from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $515.00 to $440.00 in a research report on Monday, June 9th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $547.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $650.00 price objective (up previously from $590.00) on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $595.95.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Intuitive Surgical news, EVP Myriam Curet sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $492.48, for a total value of $2,216,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 353 shares of the company's stock, valued at $173,845.44. This represents a 92.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Gary S. Guthart sold 7,893 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.64, for a total value of $3,935,765.52. Following the sale, the insider owned 13,187 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,575,565.68. This trade represents a 37.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,903 shares of company stock valued at $7,932,778 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

Intuitive Surgical Trading Up 0.0%

ISRG stock traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $483.36. The stock had a trading volume of 2,493,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,146,593. Intuitive Surgical, Inc. has a 1-year low of $425.00 and a 1-year high of $616.00. The company has a fifty day moving average of $524.01 and a 200 day moving average of $532.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $173.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.41, a PEG ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 1.59.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical equipment provider reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.26. Intuitive Surgical had a return on equity of 14.56% and a net margin of 28.51%. The company had revenue of $2.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.78 EPS. The business's revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Intuitive Surgical, Inc. will post 6.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Intuitive Surgical Profile

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.