Sterne Agee Believes Intuitive Surgical May Benefit from FDA Boxed Warning

In a report published Thursday, Sterne Agee analyst Gregory P. Chodaczek reiterated a Neutral rating on

. In the report, Sterne Agee noted, “U.S. hysterectomy procedures have fallen over the last few years and we estimate that procedure volume will continue to decline. With power morcellation contraindicated by the FDA, we believe hysterectomy procedures will move from Laparoscopic Supracervical Hysterectomies (LSH) to Total Laparoscopic Hysterectomies (TLH), which could benefit Intuitive Surgical, as many LSH procedures are performed without the use of a da Vinci system. We remain Neutral as the current 36x forward P/E is at a 33-month high, and our projected EPS growth rate is slowing.” Intuitive Surgical closed on Wednesday at $518.61.