BY JIM HAMMERAND

The Da Vinci Xi robotic surgery system. Intuitive continues to dominate the space. [Image courtesy of Intuitive]

Intuitive Surgical (Nasdaq: ISRG)+ stock declined after the surgical robotics developer missed on revenue for the third quarter but beat analysts’ expectations on profit.

Shares of ISRG dropped 8% to $251 in after-hours trading when Intuitive released the results.

MassDevice’s MedTech 100 Index — which includes stocks of the world’s largest medical device companies — was down slightly on the day.

The Sunnyvale, California-based surgical robotics leader posted profits of $416 million, or $1.16 per share for the three months ended Sept. 30, 2023. That was a 28% bottom-line gain compared to Q3 2022.

The company reported sales of $1.74 billion, up 12% from the same quarter last year. Intuitive attributed the gains to growth in da Vinci surgical robot procedures and an increase in the installed base of systems.

Adjusted earnings per share were $1.46, which was 5¢ better than expected on Wall Street, where analysts were looking for adjusted earnings per share of $1.41 on $1.77 billion in revenue.

Worldwide da Vinci procedures grew by 19%, Intuitive said. Intuitive placed 312 da Vinci systems in the quarter, up from 305 the same quarter last year.

“We are pleased by our customers’ continued adoption of da Vinci surgery and their acceptance and use of our Ion and SP platforms,” Intuitive CEO Gary Guthart said in a news release. “We continue to focus on supporting their needs through the pursuit of expanded indications, delivering excellence in quality and supply, and increasing our productivity.”

Intuitive’s stock also dropped when it reported financial results last quarter, despite beating analysts’ expectations on sales and profit.

In both cases, it could be due to investors’ continued concerns about the impact of GLP-1 weight loss drugs on patients who would be potential candidates for Intuitive bariatric procedures. CEO Gary Guthart and Chief Medical Officer Dr. Myriam Curet shared their thoughts on that today.