What ISRG's 21.6% ROIC Reveals: Surgical Robotics Moat Under the Microscope
Intuitive Surgical generates 3x the returns on capital of Medtronic and Stryker. DuPont decomposition reveals ISRG wins on both NOPAT margin (25.6% vs 15%) AND capital turnover (0.84x vs 0.49x) — a rare double advantage. The counter-intuitive finding: high stock compensation actually understates their operating efficiency.