On Feb. 1, Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) released fourth-quarter earnings for the period ended Dec. 31.

  • Sales increased by 56% to $112 million, thanks to da Vinci Surgical System sales and continued growth in recurring revenue.
  • Net income declined by 52%. This is not a concern, though, since there was a significant tax benefit received in Q4 2005 that did not occur in Q4 2006.
  • Intuitive Surgical is well-liked in CAPS, the Fool's stock-rating service; 96% of players with a rating on the company have given it an outperform, leading to a respectable four-star rating.

(Figures in millions, except per-share data)

Income Statement Highlights

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change

Sales

$112.6

$72.1

56.1%

Net Profit

$23.6

$49.5

(52.3%)

EPS

$0.62

$1.31

(52.7%)

Diluted Shares

38.2

37.7

1.5%



Get back to basics with a look at the income statement.

Margin Checkup

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change*

Gross Margin

66.6%

67.4%

(0.8)

Operating Margin

31.5%

32.6%

(1.1)

Net Margin

21.0%

68.7%

(47.7)

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine. See how they work.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Assets

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change

Cash + ST Invest.

$330.3

$202.7

62.9%

Accounts Rec.

$94.7

$52.8

79.2%

Inventory

$24.3

$15.2

60.2%



Liabilities

Q4 2006

Q4 2005

Change

Accounts Payable*

$44.7

$33.5

33.5%

Long-Term Debt

$0

$0

N/A

*Accounts payable include other accrued liabilities.

Learn the ways of the balance sheet.

Cash Flow Highlights
A statement of cash flows was not provided. Tsk, tsk.

Find out why Fools always follow the money.

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Related Foolishness:

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Fool by Numbers is designed to give you the raw earnings information in a timely fashion, putting all the numbers you need in one easy-to-read place. But at The Motley Fool, we believe numbers tell only part of the story, so check Fool.com for more of our in-depth discussion of what the numbers mean. This data has been provided by Netscribes. To provide feedback on this article, please click on the "feedback" button below.