Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) Rating Increased to Outperform at Oppenheimer

Key Points

• Oppenheimer upgraded Intuitive Surgical to “outperform” from “market perform” and set a $500 price target, implying 24.62% upside. Analysts overall maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average target of $508.68.
• Intuitive Surgical reported quarterly earnings of $2.80 per share, beating estimates by $0.32, while revenue reached $2.89 billion, up 18.4% year over year and ahead of expectations.
• Shares opened at $401.23, with a $141.75 billion market capitalization; institutional investors own 83.64% of the stock, while insiders sold $2.95 million worth of shares during the latest quarter under pre-arranged trading plans.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Oppenheimer from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has a $500.00 target price on the medical equipment provider's stock. Oppenheimer's price objective points to a potential upside of 24.62% from the company's current price.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on ISRG. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $440.00 to $366.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Intuitive Surgical from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $650.00 to $600.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $560.00 to $515.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Intuitive Surgical from $520.00 to $515.00 in a report on Friday, June 12th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $508.68.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of Intuitive Surgical stock opened at $401.23 on Wednesday. Intuitive Surgical has a 12-month low of $328.57 and a 12-month high of $603.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $392.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $443.35.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 16th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.81 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate 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 the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $379.00, for a total transaction of $151,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,320 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,016,280. This represents a 6.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Amy L. Ladd sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the director owned 251 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $95,129. This represents a 61.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 7,106 shares of company stock worth $2,949,518 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 0.5% during the third quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 4,033 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,804,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp boosted its position in Intuitive Surgical by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 4,180 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $2,367,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. grew its stake in Intuitive Surgical by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 269 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $152,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Intuitive Surgical by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 203 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Intuitive Surgical by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,941 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $2,798,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 83.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Intuitive Surgical

Intuitive Surgical, founded in 1995 and headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, is a medical technology company focused on the design, manufacture and service of robotic-assisted surgical systems. The company is best known for its da Vinci surgical systems, which enable minimally invasive procedures by translating a surgeon's hand movements into finer, scaled motions of small instruments inside the patient. Intuitive's business centers on supplying hospitals and surgical centers with systems, instruments and related technologies that aim to improve precision, visualization and control in the operating room.

In addition to its core surgical platforms, Intuitive markets a portfolio of reusable and disposable instruments, accessories, and proprietary software, and provides training, servicing and clinical support to its customers.

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