Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) shares ended in the red on July 22 after Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) secured marketing authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its new Ottava robotic surgical platform. This milestone marks JNJ’s debut into soft-tissue robotic surgery, directly challenging ISRG in its core market.
The announcement added to pressure on Intuitive Surgical stock, which was already down about 35% year-to-date heading into Wednesday.