Castle Hook Partners LP Raises Stock Holdings in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG)

Castle Hook Partners LP raised its holdings in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) by 25.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 135,273 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 27,132 shares during the quarter. Intuitive Surgical makes up 0.9% of Castle Hook Partners LP’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Castle Hook Partners LP’s holdings in Intuitive Surgical were worth $70,607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in Intuitive Surgical in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Intuitive Surgical in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Intuitive Surgical in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in shares of Intuitive Surgical during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Intuitive Surgical in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 83.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $630.00 to $605.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup raised their target price on Intuitive Surgical from $640.00 to $711.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $475.00 to $575.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Intuitive Surgical from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Intuitive Surgical from $600.00 to $575.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Intuitive Surgical presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $598.95.

Intuitive Surgical Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ISRG opened at $531.82 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $503.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $534.46. The stock has a market cap of $190.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 82.97, a P/E/G ratio of 5.85 and a beta of 1.70. Intuitive Surgical, Inc. has a 1 year low of $379.67 and a 1 year high of $616.00.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The medical equipment provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $2.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. Intuitive Surgical had a return on equity of 14.55% and a net margin of 27.81%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Intuitive Surgical, Inc. will post 6.43 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Myriam Curet sold 408 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $589.75, for a total value of $240,618.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 353 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $208,181.75. This represents a 53.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Robert Desantis sold 11,545 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $499.22, for a total value of $5,763,494.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,607,925.28. The trade was a 68.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 33,313 shares of company stock worth $17,229,143. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

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.