New York, February 4, 2026, 15:02 ET — Regular session
- ISRG edged up roughly 0.2% to hover around $480 in afternoon trading, following a volatile session earlier in the day
- QQQ, tracking the Nasdaq, dropped roughly 1.6% amid weakness in growth stocks; meanwhile, Dow-linked DIA edged up.
- Medical-devices ETF IHI falls roughly 1.0%; Medtronic takes a hit as Stryker edges up
Intuitive Surgical shares ticked up on Wednesday, staying close to $480 in afternoon trading following a steep two-day drop. By 2:47 p.m. ET, the surgical-robotics company’s stock had climbed roughly 0.2% to $480.02, fluctuating between $465.81 and $482.18 earlier in the session.
The drop followed a slump in U.S. markets, tech stocks taking the biggest hit as investors wrestled with how much the AI frenzy has already been baked in. “The stock market is having a really hard knowing where to price the stocks,” said Jed Ellerbroek, a portfolio manager at Argent Capital. (Reuters)
This hits Intuitive hard since its shares often act like a growth stock, despite being in healthcare. With interest rates and risk appetite dominating this week’s headlines, investors have shown little patience for pricey names.
Shares ended Tuesday at $478.88, slipping 3.59% to mark a sixth consecutive day of declines. The stock now trades over 21% below its 52-week peak, MarketWatch reports. Volume surged to 3.8 million shares—more than twice its 50-day average of 1.8 million. (MarketWatch)
Wednesday brought mixed moves in medtech. The iShares U.S. Medical Devices ETF dipped roughly 1%. Medtronic shares slipped, but Stryker pushed higher.
Intuitive’s latest major catalyst came with its earnings report, delivering mixed signals. The company surpassed Wall Street expectations for both profit and revenue in the fourth quarter, announced in late January. It also revealed that global da Vinci procedures climbed roughly 18% in that period. However, the forecast for this year showed a slower pace: da Vinci-assisted procedures are expected to grow between 13% and 15%, compared to an anticipated 18% increase in 2025. Additionally, the company warned of a tariff impact of around 1.2% of revenue factored into its 2026 gross margin forecast. (Reuters)
The company is also pushing da Vinci 5 into more challenging areas of the operating room. On Jan. 26, Intuitive announced the FDA cleared the system for specific cardiac procedures via the 510(k) pathway, which applies to devices considered substantially equivalent to existing ones. “Opening the chest to perform surgical procedures can involve significant pain, high risk of complications, and long recovery times,” CEO Dave Rosa said. (GlobeNewswire)
That said, the stock’s vulnerability to market swings works both ways. If high-multiple stocks sell off harder or concerns about hospital budgets and procedure volumes resurface, the shares could stay under pressure—even without any news from the company itself.
All eyes shift to the upcoming U.S. labor figures, with Thursday’s JOLTS report on job openings and the January employment report set for release on Feb. 11, according to the government calendar. (Bls)
