Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada Makes New Investment in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG)

Key Points

• Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada invested $804,000 in Intuitive Surgical, acquiring 1,624 shares, making it the firm’s 10th largest position.
• Intuitive Surgical reported earnings of $2.19 EPS for the most recent quarter, exceeding estimates by $0.26, along with a a 21.4% year-over-year revenue increase.
• Analysts have a mixed outlook on Intuitive Surgical, with fourteen buy ratings, five hold ratings, and one sell rating, setting an average price target of $595.95.

Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada bought a new position in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,624 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $804,000. Intuitive Surgical comprises 1.8% of Investment Counsel Co. of Nevada's portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Intuitive Surgical by 7.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,148,180 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $2,165,184,000 after acquiring an additional 295,025 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Intuitive Surgical by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,619,293 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,889,126,000 after acquiring an additional 494,496 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Intuitive Surgical by 25.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,381,302 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,764,904,000 after buying an additional 687,906 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 54,010.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,028,576 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $14,999,630,000 after acquiring an additional 3,022,979 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,826,972 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,475,566,000 after buying an additional 319,694 shares during the last quarter. 83.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ISRG shares. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Intuitive Surgical from $470.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $600.00 to $575.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $650.00 target price (up from $590.00) on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Intuitive Surgical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Intuitive Surgical from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $515.00 to $440.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $595.95.

Intuitive Surgical Trading Down 0.6%

NASDAQ:ISRG traded down $2.94 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $474.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,189,756 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,261,750. Intuitive Surgical, Inc. has a 52-week low of $425.00 and a 52-week high of $616.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $169.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.00 and a beta of 1.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $521.43 and a 200-day moving average of $531.52.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The medical equipment provider reported $2.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $2.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.35 billion. Intuitive Surgical had a net margin of 28.51% and a return on equity of 14.56%. Intuitive Surgical's revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.78 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Intuitive Surgical, Inc. will post 6.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Intuitive Surgical

In other Intuitive Surgical news, insider Gary S. Guthart sold 7,893 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.64, for a total transaction of $3,935,765.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mark Brosius sold 216 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $563.11, for a total value of $121,631.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 907 shares in the company, valued at approximately $510,740.77. The trade was a 19.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,903 shares of company stock worth $7,932,778 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.70% 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.