Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,850,000 shares, a growth of 8.5% from the October 15th total of 3,550,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,200,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $538.00 target price (up from $495.00) on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $512.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. BTIG Research set a $535.00 price objective on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI reiterated a “cautious” rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $495.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Intuitive Surgical currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $524.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gary S. Guthart sold 18,151 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.63, for a total transaction of $9,286,596.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 24,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,391,166.97. This trade represents a 42.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jamie Samath sold 269 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $539.89, for a total transaction of $145,230.41. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,727,816.73. The trade was a 2.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 91,178 shares of company stock worth $45,897,071. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intuitive Surgical

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ISRG. Creekmur Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Intuitive Surgical by 200.0% in the 1st quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 63 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 140.0% during the 3rd 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. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, LGT Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Intuitive Surgical by 415.4% during 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 during the last quarter. 83.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Intuitive Surgical stock opened at $531.64 on Tuesday. Intuitive Surgical has a 52-week low of $304.50 and a 52-week high of $544.38. The company has a 50 day moving average of $500.33 and a 200 day moving average of $459.58. The company has a market capitalization of $189.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 85.47, a P/E/G ratio of 5.19 and a beta of 1.39.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.01 billion. Intuitive Surgical had a net margin of 28.51% and a return on equity of 13.41%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Intuitive Surgical will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.