Sirona Dental Systems announced increased revenues today because of currency fluctuations. But the volume of the company's sales declined. And officially it lost money because it revalued some of its assets.
For the company's fourth quarter of 2008 (end-September 30), revenue increased 1.5% to $180.6 million compared to the fourth quarter of 2007.
However, U.S. revenue declined by 12%, driven by lower CAD/CAM systems sales. The value of Sirona's sales abroad increased 7%, but in constant currency they were down 3%. Overall, the company's fourth-quarter revenues were down 5.2% in constant currency.
The company said it expects revenue for the current financial year to be flat on a constant currency basis.
"The weakened global economy has resulted in a challenging dental equipment environment," Chief Executive Jost Fischer said, according to Reuters.
One-time charges from accounting corrections resulted in a loss for the company of $5.2 million.
Sales of instruments increased 16% (up 6% constant currency), treatment centers increased 10% (flat constant currency), imaging systems increased 6% (up 1% constant currency), and dental CAD/CAM systems decreased 15% (down 19% constant currency).
