Intuitive Surgical (ISRG +0.22%) is in its own bear market, down more than 30% from its early 2025 highs. Wall Street analysts are still upbeat on the future, however, with an average price target of $570. That would represent a full recovery and a gain of more than 30% from recent depressed levels.
If history is any guide, Wall Street analysts are likely correct about the stock's recovery potential. And that remains true even though the price-to-earnings ratio is a lofty 51x. Here's what you need to know if you are thinking about buying Intuitive Surgical today.
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Intuitive Surgical has a strong business model
Intuitive Surgical is a medical device company. That said, it is focused entirely on surgical robots, with its da Vinci surgical system. It is an industry leader in the space, with 11,395 systems installed worldwide at the end of the first quarter of 2026, up 12% from the prior year. There is clearly a strong demand for the da Vinci system.
The number of surgeries performed by a da Vinci robot rose 17% year over year. That highlights the broad demand for robotic surgery that Intuitive Surgical is leaning into. And it shows why the company's true business strength isn't selling robots, but selling instruments, accessories, and services. Together, these three revenue items make up roughly 75% of the top line. They are annuity-like income streams that get more attractive every time the company sells another da Vinci system.
NASDAQ: ISRG
Key Data Points
The long-term outlook for the business is strong, given that Intuitive Surgical will benefit from selling new da Vinci systems, increased patient demand for robotic surgery, and its successful efforts to expand the robot's use cases.
Wall Street is aware of Intuitive Surgical's success
The problem is that investors have afforded the stock a lofty valuation, as noted by its P/E of 51x. However, that's down from a five-year average of 70x. This stock won't interest value investors, and given its lack of a dividend, income lovers will want to look elsewhere, too. But if you are an aggressive growth investor, the current drawdown should probably pique your interest.
As the chart above highlights, a 30% drawdown is actually fairly common for Intuitive Surgical. While it could still fall further, the stock has recovered after each similar drop and then pushed higher. This hasn't happened once or twice; the company has been through drawdowns of this magnitude over a half-dozen times since its initial public offering. There's no reason to believe this time will be any different, so the Wall Street analyst call here seems reasonable.
That stance is backed up by the company's still-strong business results. Notably, given the annuity-like nature of selling instruments, accessories, and services, even a temporary slowdown in the sale of new da Vinci systems probably wouldn't be enough to derail the company's long-term prospects.
Intuitive Surgical: Buy and hold, for the long term
What investors probably shouldn't do with Intuitive Surgical is view it as a short-term trade. The healthcare company has helped create a new market and continues to lead the way forward. The opportunity ahead isn't six months or a year long; it is likely to be a decade or more in size. It will take a strong constitution to listen to Wall Street analysts and buy the stock while it is falling, but history suggests you will be well rewarded if you stick it out through this drawdown... and others that are likely to come, as well, as the company takes advantage of a material technological change in the healthcare sector.
