ISRG
Intuitive Surgical, Inc.
ISRG has the edge over NVO overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
NVO
Novo Nordisk A/S
NVO trails on the overall score without a compensating advantage in the available component scores.
ISRG Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
ISRG's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
NVO Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy |
NVO's revenue, profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its cash flow is stable.
ISRG PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 36x | $440 | — |
| Cheap | 52x | $429 | -2.5% |
| Current | 53x | $440 | — |
| Fair | 72x | $596 | +36% |
| Expensive | 84x | $691 | +57% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
ISRG's PE is in its cheap range at 53x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 36x next year's earnings.
NVO PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current | 10x | $40.65 | — |
| Cheap | 14x | $53.56 | +32% |
| Fair | 27x | $103 | +154% |
| Expensive | 39x | $152 | +273% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NVO has the edge over ISRG in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
ISRG Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Moderate | |
| High |
ISRG has the edge over NVO on the outlook, with more favorable earnings and profitability expectations.
NVO Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| -- | |
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Weakening | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect NVO's revenue to grow, but its profitability to weaken. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
ISRG Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $12.09 | +47% |
| Q3 2026 | $8.25 | +9% |
| Q2 2026 | $8.71 | +21% |
| Q1 2026 | $8.23 | +20% |
| Q4 2025 | $7.87 | +23% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.57 | +22% |
| Q2 2025 | $7.18 | +23% |
| Q1 2025 | $6.83 | +23% |
| Q4 2024 | $6.42 | +28% |
ISRG has the edge over NVO on earnings, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
NVO Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $3.89 | +4.9% |
| Q1 2026 | $4.07 | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.42 | +1.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.47 | +10% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.71 | +24% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.49 | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.36 | +21% |
| Q3 2024 | $3.15 | +27% |
NVO's earnings per share have climbed steadily: $3.89 over the past year, up 4.9% from the year before, and higher year over year every quarter since late 2020.
ISRG Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3B | +22% |
| Q2 2026 | $2.9B | +19% |
| Q1 2026 | $2.8B | +23% |
| Q4 2025 | $2.9B | +19% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.5B | +23% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.4B | +21% |
| Q1 2025 | $2.3B | +19% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.4B | +25% |
ISRG has the edge over NVO on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 19% | -11 points |
| Q2 2026 | 34% | +3.1 points |
| Q1 2026 | 31% | +5.2 points |
| Q4 2025 | 30% | -0.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 30% | +2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 30% | +2.2 points |
| Q1 2025 | 26% | +0.8 points |
| Q4 2024 | 30% | +7.1 points |
ISRG's operating margin was 19% last quarter, down 11 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the bottom of its range since 2019.
NVO Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $11.7B | +2.1% |
| Q1 2026 | $14.4B | +24% |
| Q4 2025 | $11.8B | -7.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.1B | +5.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $11.4B | +13% |
| Q1 2025 | $11.6B | +19% |
| Q4 2024 | $12.7B | +30% |
| Q3 2024 | $10.6B | +21% |
NVO's revenue is growing: $11.7B last quarter, up 2.1% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 34% | -9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 62% | +12 points |
| Q4 2025 | 40% | -2.8 points |
| Q3 2025 | 32% | -16 points |
| Q2 2025 | 44% | +5.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 50% | +1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 43% | +2.2 points |
| Q3 2024 | 47% | +1.6 points |
NVO has the edge over ISRG on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
ISRG Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.1B | +51% |
| Q2 2026 | $948.4M | +69% |
| Q1 2026 | $808.6M | +74% |
| Q4 2025 | $730M | +43% |
| Q3 2025 | $735.6M | +60% |
| Q2 2025 | $560.1M | +80% |
| Q1 2025 | $465M | +1879% |
| Q4 2024 | $510.6M | +$717.8M |
ISRG has the edge over NVO on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
NVO Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $6.3B | +73% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.8B | +20% |
| Q4 2025 | -$5.4B | -$4.7B |
| Q3 2025 | $4.6B | -2.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.6B | -34% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.5B | +89% |
| Q4 2024 | -$632.6M | +$390.5M |
| Q3 2024 | $4.7B | +3.3% |
NVO still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2026 peak: $7.3B over the past year.
ISRG Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.6% | -5.7M shares |
| 1 year | -2.8% | -10.2M shares |
| 3 years | -1.8% | -6.6M shares |
| 5 years | -4.1% | -15.2M shares |
| Available history | -1.9% | -6.9M shares |
ISRG has the edge over NVO on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3B |
| Q2 2026 | $320.3M |
| Q1 2026 | $1.1B |
| Q4 2025 | $201M |
| Q3 2025 | $1.9B |
| Q4 2024 | — |
| Q3 2024 | — |
| Q2 2024 | — |
ISRG spent $4.6B buying back its own shares over the past year.
NVO Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.3% | -12.9M shares |
| 1 year | -0.2% | -11M shares |
| 3 years | -1.5% | -66.8M shares |
| 5 years | -3.8% | -177M shares |
| Available history | -6.5% | -311M shares |
NVO has 4.4B diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $520M |
| Q1 2026 | $356.7M |
| Q4 2025 | — |
| Q3 2025 | — |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $206.3M |
| Q4 2024 | $1.1B |
| Q3 2024 | $357.4M |
NVO spent $877M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 48% from the year before.
ISRG Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q4 2021 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2021 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2021 | -0.9x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2021 | -1.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2020 | -1.2x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2020 | -1.1x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2020 | -1.5x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2020 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
ISRG has more cash than debt.
NVO Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2024 | -0.0x | Very low |
NVO's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
ISRG Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 54.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 73.5 | Neutral |
ISRG's weekly RSI is 55 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 74 (neutral).
NVO Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 27.0 | Neutral |
NVO's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 27 (neutral).
ISRG PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | ISRG | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 53x | 26x | 106% above |
| PE % | 19 | 29 | 10 pts below |
ISRG is trading at 53x earnings, a 106% premium to the Healthcare sector's median of 26x.
NVO PE vs Healthcare Sector
| Metric | NVO | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 10x | 26x | 60% below |
| PE % | 6 | 29 | 23 pts below |
NVO has the edge over ISRG on valuation relative to its sector.
ISRG Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $428.1 | 2.8% above |
| 20 week MA | $397.4 | 11% above |
| 50 week MA | $449.8 | 2.2% below |
| 100 week MA | $483.9 | 9.1% below |
| 200 week MA | $424.9 | 3.5% above |
ISRG has the edge over NVO on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
NVO Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $39.2 | 3.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $43.9 | 7.4% below |
| 50 week MA | $45.3 | 10% below |
| 100 week MA | $56.3 | 28% below |
| 200 week MA | $80.7 | 50% below |
NVO has bounced recently, but its long-term trend is still down: it's above its 8-week average, but 50% below its 200-week average.
ISRG Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $199.3 | $269.0 | +35% |
| 2021 | $269.0 | $363.9 | +35% |
| 2022 | $363.9 | $262.7 | -28% |
| 2023 | $262.7 | $337.4 | +28% |
| 2024 | $337.4 | $534.9 | +59% |
| 2025 | $534.9 | $577.8 | +8% |
| 2026 YTD | $577.8 | $439.9 | -24% |
ISRG has finished higher in five of the last six years. It's down 24% so far in 2026.
NVO Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $29.1 | $34.7 | +19% |
| 2021 | $34.7 | $54.2 | +56% |
| 2022 | $54.2 | $67.0 | +24% |
| 2023 | $67.0 | $103.5 | +54% |
| 2024 | $103.5 | $87.4 | -16% |
| 2025 | $87.4 | $52.4 | -40% |
| 2026 YTD | $52.4 | $40.7 | -22% |
NVO has the edge over ISRG on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.