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

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 research report issued on Sunday.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on ISRG. UBS Group set a $600.00 price objective on Intuitive Surgical and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $599.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Erste Group Bank restated a "hold" rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $685.00 target price on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a report on Friday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Intuitive Surgical presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $602.32.

Intuitive Surgical Price Performance

Shares of ISRG stock opened at $546.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $195.91 billion, a PE ratio of 72.29, a P/E/G ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 1.61. Intuitive Surgical has a 1-year low of $425.00 and a 1-year high of $616.00. The business has a 50-day moving average of $458.09 and a 200 day moving average of $497.29.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG - Get Free Report) last released 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. The business had revenue of $2.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. Intuitive Surgical had a return on equity of 15.08% and a net margin of 28.58%.Intuitive Surgical's quarterly revenue was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.84 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Intuitive Surgical will post 6.43 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Intuitive Surgical news, insider Gary S. Guthart sold 29,360 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.49, for a total transaction of $13,872,306.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 19,827 shares in the company, valued at $9,368,059.23. This represents a 59.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Amy L. Ladd sold 335 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $440.69, for a total value of $147,631.15. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 739 shares in the company, valued at approximately $325,669.91. The trade was a 31.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,724 shares of company stock valued at $19,500,332. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intuitive Surgical

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,569,260,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Intuitive Surgical in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,715,899,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,335,833 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $18,115,025,000 after buying an additional 670,302 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 26.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,819,666 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,396,496,000 after buying an additional 584,375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 20.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 3,393,951 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,680,922,000 after buying an additional 566,979 shares during the last quarter. 83.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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