UPDATE: Stifel Nicolaus Initiates Intuitive Surgical at Hold; Shares Fully Valued

Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Intuitive Surgical

with a Hold rating. Stifel Nicolaus commented, "We are initiating coverage of Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (ISRG) shares with a Hold rating on the shares. After a decade of impressive growth, market penetration, and share price appreciation, we view ISRG, the dominant global robotic surgery franchise, as still in the relatively early days of its growth curve. But at 30x our current $17.80 2013 EPS estimate and with significantly positive sentiment on the shares, we are inclined to await a better risk/reward entry point, given the stock's historical volatility and now declining dVP procedures." Intuitive Surgical closed at $533.92 on Monday.