Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) Upgraded by Morgan Stanley to Overweight Rating

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report issued on Monday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. Morgan Stanley currently has $650.00 price objective on the medical equipment provider’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $522.00.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI reiterated a “cautious” rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Intuitive Surgical from $475.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Mizuho upped their target price on Intuitive Surgical from $440.00 to $500.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $604.00 price target on Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Friday, October 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $536.61.

Intuitive Surgical Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of ISRG opened at $542.85 on Monday. Intuitive Surgical has a twelve month low of $304.50 and a twelve month high of $552.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $193.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 87.27, a PEG ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 1.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $510.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $469.49.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.01 billion. Intuitive Surgical had a return on equity of 13.41% and a net margin of 28.51%. Analysts predict that Intuitive Surgical will post 5.45 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Mark Brosius sold 2,128 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $515.00, for a total transaction of $1,095,920.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,595. The trade was a 88.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert Desantis sold 376 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $539.00, for a total value of $202,664.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,967,734. This represents a 6.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 51,023 shares of company stock valued at $26,384,247 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Intuitive Surgical

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 140.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 60 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 415.4% in the second quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 67 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Intuitive Surgical in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 83.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Intuitive Surgical Company 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.