Merit Financial Group LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG)

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) by 49.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 6,664 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,213 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Intuitive Surgical were worth $3,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ISRG. Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its holdings in Intuitive Surgical by 140.0% in the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 60 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Intuitive Surgical in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in Intuitive Surgical by 80.0% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 81 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 83.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ISRG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Intuitive Surgical from $549.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Intuitive Surgical from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Intuitive Surgical from $525.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued a “cautious” rating on shares of Intuitive Surgical in a research note on Friday, October 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $554.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intuitive Surgical

In other Intuitive Surgical news, EVP Brian Edward Miller sold 2,553 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $515.00, for a total transaction of $1,314,795.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,638,990. The trade was a 26.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jamie Samath sold 108 shares of Intuitive Surgical stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $542.06, for a total value of $58,542.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 8,757 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,746,819.42. The trade was a 1.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 48,190 shares of company stock valued at $25,012,927. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Performance

Intuitive Surgical stock opened at $592.64 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $211.09 billion, a PE ratio of 95.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 1.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $540.66 and a 200 day moving average of $499.19. Intuitive Surgical, Inc. has a one year low of $362.14 and a one year high of $597.68.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The medical equipment provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.32. The firm 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, sell-side analysts predict that Intuitive Surgical, Inc. will post 5.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Intuitive Surgical 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.