MDT vs ALC vs ISRG Stock Comparison

Medtronic, Alcon and Intuitive Surgical Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
1 more company in this comparison (ABT) Create a free account to keep reading and compare up to 10 companies.
MDT Medtronic plc
$105.04 +19.4% 1M +16.2% 1Y
Market cap
$132.76B
P/E
25.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$37.54B
Div. yield
0.03%
Medical Devices Healthcare
5 wins
ALC Alcon Inc
$77.31 +20.2% 1M +4.2% 1Y
Market cap
$37.86B
P/E
58.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$10.80B
Div. yield
–
Medical Devices Healthcare
ISRG Intuitive Surgical Inc
$482.10 +18.6% 1M -10.5% 1Y
Market cap
$162.81B
P/E
55.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.58B
Div. yield
–
Medical Devices Healthcare
5 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

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

QuestionMDTALCISRGLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $132.76B $37.86B $162.81B ISRG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 25.4x 58.9x 55.1x MDT
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 18.9x 24.0x 42.0x MDT
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.8% +8.5% +20.5% ISRG
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 13.9% 6.0% 25.5% ISRG
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 6.9% 3.6% — MDT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.0x — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +16.2% +4.2% -10.5% MDT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -3.1%/yr -2.0%/yr +5.7%/yr ISRG
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 25.6% 29.5% 35.9% MDT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 65/100 67/100 80/100 ISRG

Percentile Scorecard

MDTALCISRG

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

AxisMDTALCISRG
Valuation 80 #47 of 229 77 #53 of 229 50 #115 of 229
Growth 51 #109 of 221 49 #114 of 221 82 #41 of 221
Profitability 88 #27 of 209 76 #52 of 209 98 #6 of 209
Financial Health 50 #120 of 240 62 #93 of 240 80 #49 of 240
Shareholder Returns 57 #64 of 146 75 #38 of 146 92 #12 of 146
Overall 65 67 80
  • MDT ranked among 248 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ALC ranked among 248 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics
  • ISRG ranked among 248 companies in Medical Devices and Diagnostics

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodMDTALCISRGSPY
1 month +19.4%+20.2%+18.6% -1.0%
3 months +22.2%+9.6%+28.5% -0.4%
6 months +35.4%+18.2%+6.7% +4.5%
Year to date +9.3%-1.9%-14.9% +12.4%
1 year +16.2%+4.2%-10.5% +13.6%
3 years +44.8%+4.0%+73.1% +76.4%
3 years, per year +13.1%+1.3%+20.1% +20.8%
5 years -14.6%-9.7%+32.1% +63.7%
5 years, per year -3.1%-2.0%+5.7% +10.4%
10 years +27.9%—+546.2% +267.7%
10 years, per year +2.5%—+20.5% +13.9%

Risk

MeasureMDTALCISRGSPY
Volatility, 1Y 25.6%29.5%35.9% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 22.0%29.0%38.0% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.150.430.98 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.630.14-0.29 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -43.6%-38.4%-49.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high -0.3%-11.3%-18.7% -1.6%
52-week high $105.35$87.18$592.85 $779.14
52-week low $73.75$62.02$332.02 $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.

MultipleMDTALCISRG
P/E now vs peer median 25.7xmedian 28.5x 59.3xmedian 28.5x 56.9xmedian 28.5x
P/S now vs peer median 3.6xmedian 2.9x 3.5xmedian 2.9x 14.4xmedian 2.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.8xmedian 18.5x —median 18.5x 39.9xmedian 18.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 21.9xmedian 26.7x 21.7xmedian 26.7x 46.4xmedian 26.7x
P/B now vs peer median 2.6xmedian 2.3x 1.7xmedian 2.3x 10.4xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median 1.78median 0.93 2.83median 0.93 2.21median 0.93

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 monthsMDTALCISRG
Revenue $37.54B $10.80B $11.58B
Gross profit $24.41B $6.17B $7.78B
Operating income $6.79B $948.00M $3.28B
Net income $5.27B $643.00M $2.97B
Free cash flow $6.13B $1.74B $3.60B
R&D $2.92B $1.43B $1.49B
EPS (diluted) $4.07 $1.30 $8.41
Cash & equivalents $1.69B $1.36B $2.98B
Total debt $28.15B $4.72B –
Shares (diluted) 1.29B 496.20M 351.60M
Enterprise value $98.01B $28.82B $143.10B

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
MetricMDTALCISRG
P/E 25.7x 59.3x 56.9x
P/FCF 21.9x 21.7x 46.4x
P/Operating cash flow 16.7x 16.3x 40.9x
P/S 3.6x 3.5x 14.4x
P/B 2.6x 1.7x 10.4x
P/Tangible book 3.3x 2.8x 11.2x
EV/EBITDA 15.8x – 39.9x
EV/EBIT 22.7x 42.5x 49.6x
EV/Revenue 4.1x 3.7x 14.1x
EV/FCF 25.1x 23.1x 45.3x
EV/Operating cash flow 19.1x 17.4x 39.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.78 2.83 2.21

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMDTALCISRG
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.8% 8.5% 20.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 6.0% 5.9% 19.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 9.3% 11.7% 21.9%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 5.6% 7.3% 19.5%
Operating income growth (1Y) 10.9% -34.3% 16.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 6.4% 7.5% 24.8%
Net income growth (1Y) 12.4% -40.1% 7.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 13.0% 21.1% 24.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 12.4% -40.7% 10.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 14.5% 21.0% 25.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 12.4% 10.3% 38.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 11.3% 25.9% 26.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 15.6% 7.5% 58.4%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 11.3% 48.0% 42.0%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMDTALCISRG
Gross margin 65.0% 57.2% 67.2%
EBITDA margin 25.9% – 35.3%
Operating margin 18.1% 8.8% 28.4%
Pretax margin 17.6% 6.9% 31.3%
Net margin 13.9% 6.0% 25.5%
FCF margin 16.3% 16.1% 31.1%
Operating cash flow margin 21.4% 21.4% 35.3%
Return on equity 10.4% 2.9% 17.3%
Return on assets 5.7% 2.1% 14.8%
Return on invested capital 6.9% 3.6% –
Return on capital employed 8.3% 3.4% 18.7%
Asset turnover 0.4x 0.3x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.5x 3.6x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 1.3% 1.6% 7.2%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMDTALCISRG
Debt / assets 30.2% 15.2% –
Debt / equity 0.6x 0.2x –
Net debt / EBITDA 2.0x – –
Debt / FCF 4.6x 2.7x –
Liabilities / assets 45.5% 30.6% 16.7%
Equity / assets 54.5% 69.4% 83.3%
Interest coverage 9.4x 9.2x –
Current ratio 2.1x 2.1x 3.3x
Quick ratio 1.3x 1.3x 2.3x
Cash ratio 0.7x 0.7x 1.6x
Altman Z-score 3.20 – 32.88

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMDTALCISRG
Dividend yield 2.7% 0.4% –
Net buyback yield 0.1% 2.4% 2.5%
Shareholder yield 2.9% 2.8% 2.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) 69.3% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 59.5% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) 1.4% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 0.2% – –

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.

ConsensusMDTALCISRG
Forward P/E 18.9xFY2026 24.0xFY2026 42.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.57FY2026 $3.22FY2026 $11.47FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +0.7%FY2026 +7.7%FY2026 +28.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +7.2% +15.5% +4.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $39.92BFY2026 $10.50BFY2026 $11.60BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +9.8%FY2026 +4.3%FY2026 +15.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -4.7% +8.1% +11.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMDTALCISRG
Held by institutions 85.1% 48.8% 86.2%
Institutions holding 2,127 631 2,240
Change in shares held, QoQ -0.2% +5.3% +4.6%
Institutions buying 1,015 227 1,073
Institutions selling 914 274 878
Buyers to sellers 1.11 0.83 1.22

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.

MDTALCISRG
MDT 1.00 0.51 0.47
ALC 0.51 1.00 0.42
ISRG 0.47 0.42 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MDT, ALC and ISRG?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Medtronic (MDT) $132.76B, Alcon (ALC) $37.86B, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) $162.81B.

Which stock is cheaper, MDT, ALC and ISRG?

Medtronic (MDT) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Medtronic (MDT) 25.4x, Alcon (ALC) 58.9x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 55.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, Medtronic (MDT) is cheapest (Medtronic (MDT) 18.9x, Alcon (ALC) 24.0x, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 42.0x). 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: Medtronic (MDT) +9.8%, Alcon (ALC) +8.5%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) +20.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) has the highest net margin (Medtronic (MDT) 13.9%, Alcon (ALC) 6.0%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 25.5%). On return on invested capital, Medtronic (MDT) leads (Medtronic (MDT) 6.9%, Alcon (ALC) 3.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Medtronic (MDT) returned the most: Medtronic (MDT) +16.2%, Alcon (ALC) +4.2%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) -10.5%. Over five years, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) compounded fastest (Medtronic (MDT) -3.1%/yr, Alcon (ALC) -2.0%/yr, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) +5.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Medtronic (MDT) 0.03%, Alcon (ALC) 0.00%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 0.00%. Alcon (ALC) and Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Medtronic (MDT) has been the steadiest (Medtronic (MDT) 25.6%, Alcon (ALC) 29.5%, Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) 35.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

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

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.