Intuitive Surgical Ups Share Buyback Program To $1.5 Bln - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Intuitive Surgical, Inc.'s (ISRG) board has authorized to repurchase an additional $779 million of the company's outstanding stock. The total amount available for share repurchases by the firm is around $1.5 billion, including some $721 million remaining from prior authorizations.

Relating to this share repurchase authorization, the company reached an accelerated share repurchase program or the "ASR Program" with Goldman, Sachs & Co., under which Intuitive Surgical would buy back $500 million of its stock from Goldman. A majority of the shares bought under the ASR Program would be received and retired within a couple of weeks. The rest of shares in the program would be received and retired by October 29, 2013, though they could be received earlier if the ASR Program is ended sooner.

Additional purchases under the remaining authorization, or $1.0 billion, would depend on market conditions and may be made from time to time in open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, accelerated share repurchase programs, issuer self-tender offers or otherwise, as determined by the management.