Waycross Partners LLC Raises Stock Position in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. $ISRG

Waycross Partners LLC grew its stake in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) by 17.0% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 52,474 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,614 shares during the period. Intuitive Surgical accounts for 2.3% of Waycross Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Waycross Partners LLC’s holdings in Intuitive Surgical were worth $24,190,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ISRG. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Intuitive Surgical during the 4th quarter worth $2,856,987,000. J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its stake in Intuitive Surgical by 18,504.6% in the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 2,127,248 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,204,788,000 after acquiring an additional 2,115,814 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 1,043.3% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,342,121 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $760,124,000 after purchasing an additional 1,224,734 shares during the last quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the fourth quarter worth about $477,225,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 106.6% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,533,771 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $868,667,000 after purchasing an additional 791,516 shares in the last quarter. 83.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ISRG opened at $345.42 on Monday. Intuitive Surgical, Inc. has a one year low of $344.55 and a one year high of $603.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.57, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $415.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $467.12.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The medical equipment provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.42. Intuitive Surgical had a return on equity of 17.09% and a net margin of 28.45%.The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.81 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Intuitive Surgical, Inc. will post 8.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ISRG. Evercore set a $430.00 target price on Intuitive Surgical in a report on Monday, July 6th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $525.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $483.00 price target (down from $577.00) on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Intuitive Surgical from $440.00 to $366.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Intuitive Surgical in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $518.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $523.46.

Intuitive Surgical News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Intuitive Surgical this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Intuitive Surgical reported stronger-than-expected Q2 revenue and earnings, helped by solid demand for its da Vinci robotic surgery systems and continued adoption of its products. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: The company still reported healthy procedure growth overall, with worldwide procedures rising and placements of robotic systems remaining strong, which supports the long-term investment case. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts lowered price targets after the report, but most kept bullish ratings such as overweight, buy, or outperform, suggesting Wall Street still sees meaningful upside despite the near-term pullback. Benzinga article
• Negative Sentiment: Management did not raise its forecast for procedure growth, and investors reacted badly to slower U.S. procedure growth and a cautious full-year outlook. Benzinga article
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters also noted concerns that changes to some insurance plans could reduce demand, adding to worries about slower U.S. growth and a softer near-term procedure trajectory. Reuters article

Insider Buying and Selling at Intuitive Surgical

In other news, SVP Iman Jeddi sold 5,625 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $420.55, for a total value of $2,365,593.75. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 6,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,718,014.65. The trade was a 46.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed 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 119 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $463.50, for a total value of $55,156.50. Following the sale, the director owned 120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,620. This trade represents a 49.79% 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 a total of 7,169 shares of company stock valued at $3,059,135 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Intuitive Surgical Company Profile

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.