Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) Short Interest Update

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,940,000 shares, a growth of 5.3% from the August 15th total of 3,740,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,490,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Craig H. Barratt sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $458.13, for a total value of $641,382.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, SVP Henry L. Charlton sold 40,243 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.84, for a total value of $19,591,902.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,461,006.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Craig H. Barratt sold 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $458.13, for a total transaction of $641,382.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 53,120 shares of company stock worth $25,528,753 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Intuitive Surgical

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,380 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,945,000 after acquiring an additional 1,129 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its position in shares of Intuitive Surgical by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 191,283 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $64,531,000 after purchasing an additional 9,869 shares during the last quarter. HCR Wealth Advisors boosted its stake in Intuitive Surgical by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. HCR Wealth Advisors now owns 1,042 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its position in Intuitive Surgical by 53.5% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 63,851 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $21,541,000 after purchasing an additional 22,264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SWP Financial LLC acquired a new position in Intuitive Surgical during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $255,000. 83.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ISRG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Intuitive Surgical from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $510.00 in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Intuitive Surgical from $375.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Intuitive Surgical from $475.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Barclays boosted their target price on Intuitive Surgical from $430.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Intuitive Surgical in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $446.45.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ISRG opened at $482.09 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $466.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $423.80. Intuitive Surgical has a one year low of $254.85 and a one year high of $496.18. The firm has a market cap of $171.00 billion, a PE ratio of 87.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 1.39.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.24. Intuitive Surgical had a return on equity of 13.04% and a net margin of 27.65%. The company had revenue of $2.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.18 EPS. Intuitive Surgical’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Intuitive Surgical will post 5.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.