Evercore ISI Downgrades Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) to Hold Citing Macro Uncertainties

Evercore ISI downgraded Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) from Buy to Hold with a price target of $690.00, Post a 3-year run, moving to sidelines on macro uncertainties.

Analyst Vijay Kumar commented, "We see 2017 as one of the most challenging years for healthcare in general, with the sector facing multiple macro questions ranging from ACA repeal to border tax reform to deductibility of interest expense. While tax reform (lower corporate rates possibly offset by border tax reform) and int. expense deductibility are probably non-events for ISRG, the broader question of ACA repeal and the uncertainty it raises for its core hospital customer base is a valid question. While ISRG's system placement historically has not correlated to hospital CapEx budgets (prior to 2013), we think the current HC environment focused on value based care is a different paradigm. In this context, we think the uncertainty amongst customer base is likely to have an impact on all big ticket items, including robotic surgery. As a result, after a 3 year run (we initiated in 2014 with a Buy when ISRG was daily fodder for negative CNBC headlines), we are moving to the sidelines on ISRG shares."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Intuitive Surgical click here. For more ratings news on Intuitive Surgical click here.

Shares of Intuitive Surgical closed at $641.79 yesterday.

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