Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bullish stance on Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG).

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the trades showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with ISRG, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

So how do we know what these investors just did?

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 15 uncommon options trades for Intuitive Surgical.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 60% bullish and 40%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 2 are puts, for a total amount of $63,430, and 13 are calls, for a total amount of $740,149.

Projected Price Targets

Analyzing the Volume and Open Interest in these contracts, it seems that the big players have been eyeing a price window from $410.0 to $495.0 for Intuitive Surgical during the past quarter.

Volume & Open Interest Development

In today's trading context, the average open interest for options of Intuitive Surgical stands at 164.11, with a total volume reaching 1,028.00. The accompanying chart delineates the progression of both call and put option volume and open interest for high-value trades in Intuitive Surgical, situated within the strike price corridor from $410.0 to $495.0, throughout the last 30 days.

Intuitive Surgical Option Activity Analysis: Last 30 Days

Largest Options Trades Observed:

About Intuitive Surgical

Intuitive Surgical develops, produces, and markets a robotic system for assisting minimally invasive surgery. It also provides the instrumentation, disposable accessories, and warranty services for the system. The company has placed more than 8,600 da Vinci systems in hospitals worldwide, with more than 5,000 installations in the US and a growing number in emerging markets.

Following our analysis of the options activities associated with Intuitive Surgical, we pivot to a closer look at the company's own performance.

Present Market Standing of Intuitive Surgical

• With a volume of 868,586, the price of ISRG is up 0.59% at $489.07.
• RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock may be approaching overbought.
• Next earnings are expected to be released in 24 days.

What The Experts Say On Intuitive Surgical

In the last month, 1 experts released ratings on this stock with an average target price of $494.0.

Unusual Options Activity Detected: Smart Money on the Move

Benzinga Edge's Unusual Options board spots potential market movers before they happen. See what positions big money is taking on your favorite stocks. Click here for access.* Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from BTIG keeps a Buy rating on Intuitive Surgical with a target price of $494.

Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock, but they have higher profit potential. Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily, scaling in and out of trades, following more than one indicator, and following the markets closely.