What happened

Corindus Vascular Robotics, Inc. (CVRS), a company developing robotic-assisted vascular intervention devices, is on the move just ahead of its fourth-quarter earnings report expected after market close today. The stock was up 16.2% as of 3:10 p.m. EDT on Wednesday.

So what 

Corindus preannounced revenue expectations for 2017 over a month ago, and investors already know the company increased its base of installed systems by 10 to a total of 33 during the fourth quarter. Although the company has already given its shareholders plenty to get excited about in recent months, it looks like investors are buying up shares today in hopes that management will hint at strong demand for its CorPath GRX System among surgeons performing peripheral vascular interventions.

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Image source: Getty Images.

The CorPath GRX System's launch is going swimmingly and it could get a big boost. In 2017, spending on peripheral procedures hit an estimated $3.4 billion, and in February, the Food and Drug Administration expanded approved applications for Corindus' system from just coronary interventions to include repairing peripheral blood vessels.

Now what

Fixing arteries that carry blood to the extremities could be a huge business for Corindus. By 2020, U.S. surgeons are expected to perform a million of the procedures annually and they'd probably prefer using a CorPath system that greatly reduces the amount of radiation they're exposed to on a regular basis.

Considering the size of this untapped market, Corindus Vascular Robotics' recent market cap of $298 million looks like it has plenty of room to grow. That could make this an important robotic surgery stock to watch in the quarters ahead.