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    Intuitive Surgical slips on 4Q procedure growth

    Associated Press – Fri, Jan 20, 2012

    NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Intuitive Surgical Inc. retreated from all-time highs Friday on what two analysts called disappointment over the number of procedures performed with the company's da Vinci robotic surgical system in the fourth quarter.

    THE SPARK: Intuitive Surgical reported its quarterly results after the market closed on Thursday. Its profit and revenue beat analyst estimates, and the company also forecast a strong in 2012, saying its revenue will grow 17 to 19 percent. That implies a total of $2.06 billion to $2.09 billion. FactSet reports that analysts were expecting revenue of $2.04 billion on average.

    However, growth in surgeries performed with the company's da Vinci system was slower than in previous quarters, and two analysts said it was less than they expected. Da Vinci procedures grew 27 percent in the fourth quarter after growing 30 percent in each of the first three quarters of 2011.

    THE BIG PICTURE: The da Vinci system is used in procedures including heart, colorectal, head and neck, and urology and gynecology operations. The Sunnyvale, Calif., company sold 152 of the systems during the fourth quarter, bringing it $225 million in revenue. Intuitive is also paid for selling instruments and accessories and servicing the systems that have already been sold.

    THE ANALYSIS: William Blair & Co. analyst Ben Andrew said close to 96,000 procedures were performed using da Vinci systems in the fourth quarter. That was about 1,250 fewer than he expected.

    "While modestly below our estimate, we believe this is still a solid result in a difficult macroeconomic environment," Andrew said in a note to clients. He maintained an "Outperform" rating on the stock.

    Collins Stewart analyst Tao Levy also called the procedure growth disappointing. He kept a "Buy" rating on Intuitive shares because he believes sales and use of the da Vinci system could grow a great deal. Levy raised his price target on the stock to $515 per share.

    SHARE ACTION: Shares of Intuitive Surgical lost $31.49, or 6.6 percent, to $443.16 in afternoon trading. The stock has climbed almost 64 percent over the last year and is up 24 percent since the company reported its third-quarter results in October. Shares reached an all-time high of $476.49 Thursday.

     

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