Company: ISRG
Filing Date: 2025-03-14
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0001035267-25-000098
Chunk: 50

Company: INTUITIVE SURGICAL INC
Filing Date: 2025-03-14
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 50
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 an excise tax if they receive payments or benefits in connection with a change in control of the company that exceeds certain prescribed limits and that we, or a successor, may forfeit a deduction on the amounts subject to this additional tax. We did not provide any executive officer, including any NEO, with a “gross-up” or other reimbursement payment for any tax liability that he or she might owe as a result of the application of Sections 280G or 4999 during 2024, and we have not agreed and are not otherwise obligated to provide any executive officer, including any NEO, with such a “gross-up” or other reimbursement.

#### Accounting for Share-Based Compensation
We follow ASC 718 for our share-based compensation awards. ASC 718 requires companies to measure the compensation expense for all share-based compensation awards made to employees and directors, including RSUs, PSUs, and stock options based on the grant date “fair value” of these awards. This calculation is performed for accounting purposes and reported in the compensation tables below, even though our executive officers may never realize any value from their awards. ASC 718 also requires companies to recognize the compensation cost of their share-based compensation awards in their income statements over the period that an executive officer is required to render service in exchange for the option or other award.

### COMPENSATION RISK CONSIDERATIONS
The Compensation Committee considers, in establishing and reviewing our employee compensation programs, whether each of these programs encourages unnecessary or excessive risk taking. The Company, after reviewing and discussing the compensation programs with the Compensation and Audit Committees of our Board, believes that the programs are balanced and do not motivate or encourage unnecessary or excessive risk taking because of, in part, the following:

• Base salaries are fixed in amount and, thus, do not encourage risk taking.

• While annual performance-based awards focus on achievement of short-term goals, and short-term goals may encourage the taking of short-term risks at the expense of long-term results, the Company’s performance-based award programs represent a reasonable portion of employees’ target total direct compensation opportunities. Performance-based awards are based on various departmental and Company-wide metrics; funding for the awards is capped at the Company level, and the distribution of the funds to executive officers and other employees is at the discretion of the Compensation Committee.

• Long-term equity awards are important to help further align employees’ interests with those of our stockholders. The ultimate value of the awards is tied to the Company’s stock price and, since awards are staggered and subject to long-term