Henry Schein achieves record results in Q4 2011

Henry Schein has achieved record-breaking financial results in the fourth and final quarter of 2011.

The dental supplier's net product sales for the period came to $2.3 billion (1.45 billion pounds), up by 15.6 percent compared to Q4 2010, though this outcome was affected by the fact that 2011 had an extra selling week compared to the previous year.

Nevertheless, the company was able to achieve improved market share across all of its business divisions, with internally-driven growth complemented by the impact of strategic acquisitions.

This strong fourth-quarter performance helped Henry Schein to surpass $8.5 billion in annual sales for the first time.

Stanley Bergman, chairman and chief executive officer of the company, said: "Overall our view is that the markets we serve are modestly improving and we look forward to a return to historic market growth of five to six percent annually over the longer term."

Earlier this month, Mr Bergman addressed the World Economic Forum on the topic of antibiotic resistance, calling for global action to address the growing problem.