How are ISRG butterfly max profit and max loss calculated?

Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit. For the ISRG butterfly priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 32.05%), the computed maximum profit is $1,414.86 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$490.00 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.

What is the breakeven for a ISRG butterfly?

The breakeven for the ISRG butterfly priced on this page is roughly $404.90 and $435.10 at expiration, derived from end-of-day chain premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The current ISRG market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 9.19%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.

How does current ISRG implied volatility affect this butterfly?

ISRG ATM IV is at 32.05% with IV rank near 34.20%, which is mid-range against its 1-year history. Strategy selection depends more on directional thesis and expected move than on a strong IV signal.

ISRG Butterfly Strategy

ISRG (Intuitive Surgical, Inc.), in the Healthcare sector, (Medical - Instruments & Supplies industry), listed on NASDAQ.

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. develops, manufactures, and markets products that enable physicians and healthcare providers to enhance the quality of and access to minimally invasive care in the United States and internationally. The company offers the da Vinci Surgical System to enable complex surgery using a minimally invasive approach; and Ion endoluminal system, which extends its commercial offerings beyond surgery into diagnostic procedures enabling minimally invasive biopsies in the lung. It also provides a suite of stapling, energy, and core instrumentation for its surgical systems; progressive learning pathways to support the use of its technology; a complement of services to its customers, including support, installation, repair, and maintenance; and integrated digital capabilities providing unified and connected offerings, streamlining performance for hospitals with program-enhancing insights. The company was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California.

ISRG (Intuitive Surgical, Inc.) trades in the Healthcare sector, specifically Medical - Instruments & Supplies, with a market capitalization of approximately $153.09B, a trailing P/E of 51.50, a beta of 1.51 versus the broader market, a 52-week range of 417.74-603.88, average daily share volume of 1.9M, a public-listing history dating back to 2000, approximately 16K full-time employees. These structural characteristics shape how ISRG stock options price implied volatility around earnings windows, capital events, and macro-driven sector rotations.

A beta of 1.51 indicates ISRG has historically moved more than the broader market, amplifying both the directional payoff and the realized volatility relative to an index-equivalent position. The trailing P/E of 51.50 is on the rich side, which tends to correlate with higher earnings-window IV expansion as the market debates whether forward growth supports the multiple.

What is a butterfly on ISRG?

A long call butterfly buys one lower-strike call, sells two ATM calls, and buys one higher-strike call, paying a small net debit for a defined-risk position that maxes out if the underlying pins the middle strike at expiration.

Current ISRG snapshot

As of May 15, 2026, spot at $421.16, ATM IV 32.05%, IV rank 34.20%, expected move 9.19%. The butterfly on ISRG below is built from the same end-of-day chain, with strikes snapped to listed contracts and premiums pulled from the bid/ask midpoint at a 28-day expiry.

Why this butterfly structure on ISRG specifically: ISRG IV at 32.05% is mid-range versus its 1-year history, so strategy selection should anchor more to the directional thesis than to the IV regime, with a market-implied 1-standard-deviation move of approximately 9.19% (roughly $38.70 on the underlying). The 28-day window matched to the front-month expiry keeps theta exposure bounded while still capturing the post-snapshot move; longer-dated ISRG expiries trade a higher absolute premium for lower per-day decay. Position sizing on ISRG should anchor to the underlying notional of $421.16 per share and to the trader's directional view on ISRG stock.

ISRG butterfly setup

The ISRG butterfly below is built from the end-of-day chain, with each option leg priced at the bid/ask midpoint of its listed strike. With ISRG near $421.16, the first option leg uses a $400.00 strike; additional legs (when the strategy has them) anchor to spot-relative offsets. Premiums come from the bid/ask midpoint on the listed ISRG chain at a 28-day expiry; the cross-strike IV skew is reflected directly in the per-leg values rather than approximated. Quantity sizing assumes one contract per option leg (or 100 ISRG shares for the stock leg in covered calls and collars).

Action	Type	Strike / Basis	Premium (est)
Buy 1	Call	$400.00	$29.40
Sell 2	Call	$420.00	$16.10
Buy 1	Call	$440.00	$7.70

ISRG butterfly risk and reward

Net Premium / Debit: -$490.00
Max Profit (per contract): $1,414.86
Max Loss (per contract): -$490.00
Breakeven(s): $404.90, $435.10
Risk / Reward Ratio: 2.887

Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit.

ISRG butterfly payoff curve

Modeled P&L at expiration across a range of underlying prices for the butterfly on ISRG. Each row is one sampled price point from the computed payoff curve; the full curve uses 200 price points internally before being summarized into 10 rows here.

Underlying Price	% From Spot	P&L at Expiration
$0.01	-100.0%	-$490.00
$93.13	-77.9%	-$490.00
$186.25	-55.8%	-$490.00
$279.37	-33.7%	-$490.00
$372.49	-11.6%	-$490.00
$465.61	+10.6%	-$490.00
$558.73	+32.7%	-$490.00
$651.85	+54.8%	-$490.00
$744.97	+76.9%	-$490.00
$838.09	+99.0%	-$490.00

When traders use butterfly on ISRG

Butterflies on ISRG are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect ISRG to settle near a specific level at expiration (often the prior close, a round number, or the max-pain strike) and want defined-risk exposure to that outcome.

ISRG thesis for this butterfly

The market-implied 1-standard-deviation range for ISRG extends from approximately $382.46 on the downside to $459.86 on the upside. A ISRG long call butterfly is a pinning play: it pays maximum at the middle strike if ISRG settles there at expiration, with the wing legs capping both the cost and the maximum loss to the net debit. Current ISRG IV rank near 34.20% is mid-range against its 1-year distribution, so the IV signal is neutral; the butterfly thesis on ISRG should anchor more to the directional view and the expected-move geometry. As a Healthcare name, ISRG options can move on sector-level news flow (peer earnings, regulatory updates, industry-specific macro data) in addition to ISRG-specific events.

ISRG butterfly positions are structurally neutral / pin (limited-risk, limited-reward); the modeled P&L assumes European-style exercise at expiration and ignores early assignment, transaction costs, dividends paid before expiry on the stock leg (when present), and the bid-ask spread on the listed chain. ISRG positions also carry Healthcare sector concentration risk; news flow inside the sector (peer earnings, regulatory shifts, supply-chain headlines) can move ISRG alongside the broader basket even when ISRG-specific fundamentals are unchanged. Always rebuild the position from current ISRG chain quotes before placing a trade.

Frequently asked questions

What is a butterfly on ISRG?: A butterfly on ISRG is the butterfly strategy applied to ISRG (stock). The strategy is structurally neutral / pin (limited-risk, limited-reward): A long call butterfly buys one lower-strike call, sells two ATM calls, and buys one higher-strike call, paying a small net debit for a defined-risk position that maxes out if the underlying pins the middle strike at expiration. With ISRG stock trading near $421.16, the strikes shown on this page are snapped to the nearest listed ISRG chain strike and the premiums come straight from the end-of-day bid/ask midpoint.
How are ISRG butterfly max profit and max loss calculated?: Max profit equals the wing width minus net debit times 100 (reached when the underlying pins the middle strike); max loss equals the net debit times 100. Two breakevens at lower-wing plus debit and upper-wing minus debit. For the ISRG butterfly priced from the end-of-day chain at a 30-day expiry (ATM IV 32.05%), the computed maximum profit is $1,414.86 per contract and the computed maximum loss is -$490.00 per contract. Live intraday quotes will differ as the chain moves through the trading session.
What is the breakeven for a ISRG butterfly?: The breakeven for the ISRG butterfly priced on this page is roughly $404.90 and $435.10 at expiration, derived from end-of-day chain premiums. Breakeven is the underlying price at which the strategy's P&L crosses zero ignoring transaction costs and assignment risk. The current ISRG market-implied 1-standard-deviation expected move is approximately 9.19%; if the move sits well outside the breakeven distance, the structure's risk-reward becomes correspondingly tighter.
When should you consider a butterfly on ISRG?: Butterflies on ISRG are pinning bets - traders use them when they expect ISRG to settle near a specific level at expiration (often the prior close, a round number, or the max-pain strike) and want defined-risk exposure to that outcome.
How does current ISRG implied volatility affect this butterfly?: ISRG ATM IV is at 32.05% with IV rank near 34.20%, which is mid-range against its 1-year history. Strategy selection depends more on directional thesis and expected move than on a strong IV signal.