DXCM vs ISRG vs ALC Stock Comparison

Dexcom, Intuitive Surgical and Alcon Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
DXCM Dexcom Inc
$78.62 -9.3% 1M +13.6% 1Y
Market cap
$30.43B
P/E
30.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$4.97B
Div. yield
–
Medical Devices Healthcare
2 wins
ISRG Intuitive Surgical Inc
$444.18 +7.1% 1M -18.6% 1Y
Market cap
$156.90B
P/E
53.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.58B
Div. yield
–
Medical Devices Healthcare
5 wins
ALC Alcon Inc
$69.81 +7.0% 1M -6.7% 1Y
Market cap
$35.06B
P/E
54.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$10.80B
Div. yield
–
Medical Devices Healthcare
2 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Intuitive Surgical leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Intuitive Surgical 5, Dexcom 2, Alcon 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionDXCMISRGALCLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $30.43B $156.90B $35.06B ISRG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 30.4x 53.1x 54.5x DXCM
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 27.8x 38.7x 21.7x ALC
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +15.5% +20.5% +8.5% ISRG
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 20.1% 25.5% 6.0% ISRG
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — — 3.6% –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +13.6% -18.6% -6.7% DXCM
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -12.8%/yr +4.2%/yr -3.5%/yr ISRG
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.7% 34.6% 28.6% ALC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 77/100 80/100 68/100 ISRG

Percentile Scorecard

DXCMISRGALC

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisDXCMISRGALC
Valuation 71 #67 of 227 53 #107 of 227 79 #48 of 227
Growth 97 #8 of 219 80 #44 of 219 48 #114 of 219
Profitability 100 #1 of 205 98 #6 of 205 78 #47 of 205
Financial Health 33 #159 of 237 78 #54 of 237 60 #95 of 237
Shareholder Returns 87 #19 of 135 91 #13 of 135 75 #35 of 135
Overall 77 80 68
  • DXCM ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ISRG ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ALC ranked among 247 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodDXCMISRGALCSPY
1 month -9.3%+7.1%+7.0% +0.9%
3 months +4.6%+25.8%+0.2% +5.9%
6 months +36.6%-2.1%-4.1% +8.5%
Year to date +18.5%-21.6%-11.4% +13.3%
1 year +13.6%-18.6%-6.7% +12.4%
3 years -11.9%+71.5%-0.3% +88.1%
3 years, per year -4.2%+19.7%-0.1% +23.5%
5 years -49.5%+23.0%-16.3% +68.2%
5 years, per year -12.8%+4.2%-3.5% +11.0%
10 years +310.1%+499.8%— +263.4%
10 years, per year +15.2%+19.6%— +13.8%

Risk

MeasureDXCMISRGALCSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.7%34.6%28.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 40.2%37.4%28.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.640.890.38 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.33-0.54-0.23 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -66.3%-49.9%-38.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -14.9%-25.1%-19.9% -0.9%
52-week high $92.34$592.85$87.18 $779.14
52-week low $54.84$332.02$62.02 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleDXCMISRGALC
P/E now vs peer median 30.1xmedian 28.8x 52.4xmedian 28.8x 53.5xmedian 28.8x
P/S now vs peer median 6.0xmedian 3.0x 13.3xmedian 3.0x 3.2xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 19.8xmedian 17.4x 36.6xmedian 17.4x —median 17.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 21.1xmedian 25.7x 42.8xmedian 25.7x 19.6xmedian 25.7x
P/B now vs peer median 11.3xmedian 2.4x 9.6xmedian 2.4x 1.6xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 0.66median 1.03 2.04median 1.03 2.55median 1.03

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsDXCMISRGALC
Revenue $4.97B $11.58B $10.80B
Gross profit $3.10B $7.78B $6.17B
Operating income $1.14B $3.28B $948.00M
Net income $999.70M $2.97B $643.00M
Free cash flow $1.41B $3.60B $1.74B
R&D $604.00M $1.49B $1.43B
EPS (diluted) $2.56 $8.41 $1.30
Cash & equivalents $1.11B $2.98B $1.36B
Total debt – – $4.72B
Shares (diluted) 390.10M 351.60M 496.20M
Enterprise value $20.75B $137.19B $26.03B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricDXCMISRGALC
P/E 30.1x 52.4x 53.5x
P/FCF 21.1x 42.8x 19.6x
P/Operating cash flow 17.0x 37.6x 14.7x
P/S 6.0x 13.3x 3.2x
P/B 11.3x 9.6x 1.6x
P/Tangible book 11.8x 10.3x 2.6x
EV/EBITDA 19.8x 36.6x –
EV/EBIT 24.3x 45.6x 38.6x
EV/Revenue 5.6x 12.9x 3.4x
EV/FCF 19.7x 41.7x 21.0x
EV/Operating cash flow 15.9x 36.7x 15.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.66 2.04 2.55

Growth

14 metrics
MetricDXCMISRGALC
Revenue growth (1Y) 15.5% 20.5% 8.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 15.8% 19.1% 5.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 22.8% 21.9% 11.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 14.9% 19.5% 7.3%
Operating income growth (1Y) 65.8% 16.6% -34.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 36.5% 24.8% 7.5%
Net income growth (1Y) 74.9% 7.5% -40.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 40.9% 24.4% 21.1%
EPS growth (1Y) 83.0% 10.8% -40.7%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 45.7% 25.7% 21.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 77.0% 38.1% 10.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 31.4% 26.4% 25.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 146.1% 58.4% 7.5%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 44.5% 42.0% 48.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricDXCMISRGALC
Gross margin 62.5% 67.2% 57.2%
EBITDA margin 28.2% 35.3% –
Operating margin 22.9% 28.4% 8.8%
Pretax margin 25.8% 31.3% 6.9%
Net margin 20.1% 25.5% 6.0%
FCF margin 28.3% 31.1% 16.1%
Operating cash flow margin 35.2% 35.3% 21.4%
Return on equity 35.8% 17.3% 2.9%
Return on assets 15.3% 14.8% 2.1%
Return on invested capital – – 3.6%
Return on capital employed 27.2% 18.7% 3.4%
Asset turnover 0.8x 0.6x 0.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.7x 1.4x 3.6x
Stock comp / revenue 3.3% 7.2% 1.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricDXCMISRGALC
Debt / assets – – 15.2%
Debt / equity – – 0.2x
Net debt / EBITDA – – –
Debt / FCF – – 2.7x
Liabilities / assets 59.4% 16.7% 30.6%
Equity / assets 40.6% 83.3% 69.4%
Interest coverage – – 9.2x
Current ratio 1.7x 3.3x 2.1x
Quick ratio 1.4x 2.3x 1.3x
Cash ratio 0.8x 1.6x 0.7x
Altman Z-score 6.94 30.44 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricDXCMISRGALC
Dividend yield – – 0.4%
Net buyback yield 1.6% 2.8% 2.7%
Shareholder yield 1.6% 2.8% 3.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusDXCMISRGALC
Forward P/E 27.8xFY2026 38.7xFY2026 21.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $2.83FY2026 $11.47FY2026 $3.22FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +35.4%FY2026 +28.4%FY2026 +7.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +4.9% +4.5% +15.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $5.08BFY2026 $11.60BFY2026 $10.50BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +9.0%FY2026 +15.3%FY2026 +4.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +16.6% +11.3% +8.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersDXCMISRGALC
Held by institutions 100.0% 86.2% 48.8%
Institutions holding 975 2,236 629
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.3% +4.6% +5.3%
Institutions buying 520 1,071 225
Institutions selling 344 877 274
Buyers to sellers 1.51 1.22 0.82

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

DXCMISRGALC
DXCM 1.00 0.34 0.27
ISRG 0.34 1.00 0.39
ALC 0.27 0.39 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, DXCM, ISRG and ALC?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Dexcom (DXCM) $30.43B, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) $156.90B, Alcon (ALC) $35.06B.

Which stock is cheaper, DXCM, ISRG and ALC?

Dexcom (DXCM) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Dexcom (DXCM) 30.4x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 53.1x, Alcon (ALC) 54.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Alcon (ALC) is cheapest (Dexcom (DXCM) 27.8x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 38.7x, Alcon (ALC) 21.7x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Dexcom (DXCM) +15.5%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) +20.5%, Alcon (ALC) +8.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) has the highest net margin (Dexcom (DXCM) 20.1%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 25.5%, Alcon (ALC) 6.0%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Dexcom (DXCM) returned the most: Dexcom (DXCM) +13.6%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) -18.6%, Alcon (ALC) -6.7%. Over five years, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) compounded fastest (Dexcom (DXCM) -12.8%/yr, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) +4.2%/yr, Alcon (ALC) -3.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Alcon (ALC) has been the steadiest (Dexcom (DXCM) 40.7%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 34.6%, Alcon (ALC) 28.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, DXCM, ISRG and ALC?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) leads on 5. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.