XRAY Stock Gains Despite Q4 Earnings Miss on Restructuring Initiative

DENTSPLY SIRONA Inc. XRAY reported fourth-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of 27 cents, up 3.8% year over year. The bottom line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.6%.

GAAP loss per share in the quarter under review was 74 cents compared with $2.16 in the prior-year quarter.

For the full year, adjusted EPS was $1.60, down 4.6% year over year. GAAP loss per share during 2025 was $3.00 compared with $4.48 last year.

DENTSPLY SIRONA’s Revenues

Revenues totaled $961 million in the reported quarter, up 6.2% year over year reportedly and 2.5% at constant currency (cc). The metric beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.5%.

The top line was driven by recovery in sales across all segments.

For full-year 2025, the company reported total sales of $3.68 billion, down 3% year over year.

DENTSPLY SIRONA Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

DENTSPLY SIRONA Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | DENTSPLY SIRONA Inc. Quote

XRAY’s Segmental Analysis

DENTSPLY SIRONA generates revenues under four segments — Connected Technology Solutions, Essential Dental Solutions, Orthodontic and Implant Solutions, and Wellspect Healthcare.

Connected Technology Solutions segment’s revenues in the fourth quarter of 2025 totaled $299 million, up 1.8% but down 1.9% year over year on a reported and constant-currency basis, respectively. This figure compares to our fourth-quarter projection of $303.3 million.

Essential Dental Solutions segment’s revenues totaled $372 million, up 7.8% year over year on a reported basis and 4% at cc. This figure compares to our fourth-quarter projection of $340.4 million.

Orthodontic and Implant Solutions segment’s revenues amounted to $202 million, up 9.8% and 6.9% year over year on a reported basis and at cc, respectively. This figure compares to our fourth-quarter projection of $188.5 million.

Wellspect Healthcare segment’s revenues totaled $88 million, up 6.9% and 1.9% year over year on a reported basis and at cc, respectively. This figure compares to our fourth-quarter projection of $86.3 million.

DENTSPLY SIRONA’s Geographic Revenues

U.S. revenues in the fourth quarter of 2025 were up 14.5% year over year on a reported basis. This figure compares to our fourth-quarter projection of 12.1% growth.

Revenues from Europe in the fourth quarter of 2025 were up 4.8% year over year on a reported basis and down 2.9% at cc. This figure compares to our fourth-quarter projection of 3.4% decline.

Revenues from the Rest of World in the fourth quarter of 2025 declined 0.6% year over year on a reported basis and 0.9% at cc. This figure compares to our fourth-quarter projection of 2.2% decline.

XRAY’s Margin Analysis

In the quarter under review, DENTSPLY SIRONA’s adjusted gross profit improved 0.4% year over year to $479 million. The adjusted gross margin contracted 300 basis points (bps) to 49.8%. We had projected an adjusted gross margin of 49.3% for the fourth quarter.

Selling, general, and administrative expenses decreased 4.5% year over year to $383 million. Research and development expenses declined 4.8% to $40 million. Adjusted operating expenses increased 3.1% year over year to $393 million.

Adjusted operating profit totaled $86 million, reflecting a 10.4% decrease from the prior-year quarter’s level. The adjusted operating margin contracted 160 bps to 13.2%.

DENTSPLY SIRONA’s Financial Update

The company exited fourth-quarter 2025 with cash and cash equivalents worth $363 million compared with $363 million at the end of the third quarter. Total debt was $2.33 billion compared with $2.39 billion in the previous quarter.

Cumulative net cash provided by operating activities at the end of fourth-quarter 2025 was $235 million compared with $461 million in the prior-year period.

DENTSPLY SIRONA has a consistent dividend-paying history, with its five-year annualized dividend growth being 10.7%.

XRAY’s Guidance

DENTSPLY SIRONA has issued its 2026 sales and earnings outlook.

The company expects its reported sales for the full year to be in the range of $3.5 billion to $3.6 billion. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at $3.67 billion.

XRAY expects its adjusted EPS for 2026 to be in the range of $1.40-$1.50. The Zacks Consensus Estimate is currently pegged at $1.49.

Our Take on DENTSPLY SIRONA

DENTSPLY SIRONA ended the fourth quarter of 2025 on a mixed note, with earnings missing estimates but sales beating the same. The recovery in sales across all segments was encouraging.

Along with the earnings release, the company announced a restructuring plan to improve operational performance and drive shareholder value creation. The plan is anticipated to result in approximately $120 million in annualized cost savings, a portion of which will likely be reinvested in targeted Return-to-Growth initiatives, including investments in accelerated innovation, clinical education, and sales team education focused on connected dentistry.

XRAY also announced a new capital deployment strategy, under which it will stop dividend payouts and redeploy capital toward debt retirement and share repurchases. These initiatives bear optimism for the stock’s prospects, as investors drove shares higher in pre-market trading despite an earnings miss and a soft outlook for 2026.

Shares of the company gained nearly 7.8% in today’s pre-market trading. Shares have risen 1.2% in the past six months compared with the industry’s growth of 24%. The broader S&P 500 Index has risen 8.7% in the same time frame.

The contraction of the adjusted gross and operating margins does not bode well for the stock.

XRAY’s Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

DENTSPLY SIRONA currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader medical space are Intuitive Surgical ISRG, AngioDynamics ANGO and Alcon ALC.

Intuitive Surgical, sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 15.7%. ISRG’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 13.2%. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Intuitive Surgical’s shares have gained 7.6% against the industry’s 3% decline in the past six months.

AngioDynamics, sporting a Zacks Rank #1 at present, has an estimated earnings growth rate of 59.3% for 2026. ANGO’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 82.1%.

AngioDynamics’s shares have gained 14.5% compared with the industry’s 3% decline in the past six months.

Alcon, carrying a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy) at present, has an estimated long-term growth rate of 6.2%. ALC’s earnings surpassed estimates in two of the trailing four quarters and missed twice, with the average surprise being 1.1%.

Alcon’s shares have gained 6.6% compared to the industry’s 3% decline in the past six months.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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