Goldman Sachs Comments on Intuitive Surgical's 4Q10 Earnings (ISRG)

Goldman Sachs is out with its report today on Intuitive Surgical ISRG following ISRG's report of 4Q10 earnings yesterday. In a note to clients, GS writes, "On Thursday, January 20, Intuitive Surgical reported 4Q2010 EPS of $3.02 (+54.7% y/y), which was $0.67 better than our forecast and $0.78 ahead of consensus. Revenue of $389mn (+20.5%) was $17mn above our estimate and $21mn about the Street. The upside in EPS was driven by higher system placements in the quarter at 124 (vs. consensus at 113 units and GS at 112 units), higher procedure growth (35% vs. consensus at 32.5% and GS at 32%), and a lower tax rate (+$0.46/15% to EPS). Despite a strong 4Q2010, we see 2011 targets as potentially aggressive, particularly as it relates to system sales. We see the implied guidance for system sales as being up in the 7%-10% range off 2010 growth of 35%." Goldman Sachs' rating and PT on ISRG are pending. ISRG is trading at $329.90, up 13.83% from yesterday's close.