Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (ISRG): This Could Send MAKO Surgical Corp. (MAKO) to New Highs

For reference, remember the massively profitable Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG), which is MAKO’s figurative cousin in robotic soft-tissue surgery, boasted monthly system utilization closer to 13 procedures during all of last year, thanks to the dozens of procedures surgeons can perform using its ground-breaking da Vinci robots.

And while Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) is currently trading down more than 23% so far this year, thanks in part to weak capital spending in the U.S. last quarter — a trend that incidentally didn’t extend to the much smaller MAKO — it’s easy to forget even after that drop, Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) stock has risen more than 2,400% over the past decade.

Foolish takeaway

Down the road, then, as hip procedures continue to grow and when MAKO eventually rolls out additional applications, including, say, a total knee or shoulder solution, that’s why I’m still convinced long-term investors stand to be handsomely rewarded for their patience.

The article This Could Send MAKO Surgical to New Highs originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Steve Symington.

Fool contributor Steve Symington owns shares of MAKO Surgical. The Motley Fool recommends Intuitive Surgical and MAKO Surgical and owns shares of Intuitive Surgical.

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