Shares of Intuitive jump on FDA approval of new surgical robot

Shares of Intuitive Surgical Inc. jumped more than 12% Tuesday after the Sunnyvale company said the Food and Drug Administration had approved the latest version of its robotic surgical system.

The company said in a statement that its new Da Vinci Xi system has longer, thinner arms that provide greater range of motion and can be used in more types of procedures than earlier models.

“Our goal is to develop technology that enhances surgical performance,” said Gary Guthart, Intuitive’s president and chief executive. “The da Vinci Xi System’s new overhead architecture means that multi-quadrant surgery can be performed without repositioning the system, an innovation long sought by surgeons who perform complex procedures.”

Intuitive shares were up $55.17, or nearly 13%, to $493.16 at 11:20 a.m. PDT.

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The company’s stock had fallen 25% in the prior 13 months, after reports that the FDA was looking into potential adverse events during surgeries with Intuitive’s prior system.

The new version of the device will sell for $1.85 million, about the same price as its prior system, Bloomberg News said. The company had about $1.87 billion in sales last year.

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