Dentsply Sirona’s Dental Segments Decline as 2026 Outlook Tightens

All three dental segments at Dentsply Sirona declined in the third quarter of 2026, giving operators, vendors and investors a useful—but nuanced—read on demand across equipment, consumables, implants and orthodontics.

The company reported $836 million in total net sales, down 7.6% as reported and 7.0% in constant currency from a year earlier. It also updated full-year guidance to approximately $3.5 billion in sales and $1.20 to $1.30 in adjusted earnings per share, excluding a $0.17 one-time benefit from tariff refunds.

The headline requires two important qualifications. First, Dentsply Sirona includes Wellspect Healthcare, a continence-care business that is not dental. Wellspect grew 11.0% in constant currency and partially offset declines in the dental portfolio. Second, third-quarter gross profit and adjusted EBITDA included a $39 million benefit from a revised inventory-profit estimate. The company said that adjustment increased adjusted net income by approximately $30 million and that equivalent benefits are not expected to recur.

What happened in the dental segments

Dentsply Sirona’s three dental reporting segments moved lower:

• Connected Technology Solutions: $230 million, down 10.1% in constant currency
• Essential Dental Solutions: $343 million, down 3.6% in constant currency
• Orthodontic and Implant Solutions: $171 million, down 16.2% in constant currency

The composition matters more than the consolidated decline.

Connected Technology Solutions includes CAD/CAM, imaging, equipment and instruments. The segment fell sharply in the Americas, where constant-currency sales declined 21.9%. Management attributed part of the pressure to a planned change in distributor inventory for CAD/CAM and to lower imaging volumes.

Essential Dental Solutions was comparatively resilient in the Americas, where constant-currency sales declined 0.8%, but fell 6.5% in EMEA. The company said lower endodontic volumes and unfavorable pricing contributed to the quarterly decline, partly offset by higher U.S. volumes of endodontic files and restorative blocks.

Orthodontic and Implant Solutions declined across every region. The company attributed the drop to lower implant volumes and the absence of Byte revenue in 2026. That comparison means the 16.2% constant-currency decline should not be read as a pure measure of current implant and orthodontic demand.

Why this matters to the dental market

Dentsply Sirona is unusually broad. Its portfolio spans capital equipment, digital workflows, consumables, endodontics, implants and orthodontics. Weakness across all three dental segments therefore carries more information than a slowdown in a single product category.

But it does not establish that the entire dental market contracted by 7.6%. Distributor inventory changes, the Byte exit, geographic mix and company-specific execution all affect the comparison.

The more useful signal is that pressure is appearing at several layers of dental purchasing at once. Equipment and imaging volumes were soft, implant volumes were lower, and parts of the consumables portfolio faced volume and pricing pressure. That is consistent with the softer practice environment described in Avized’s analysis of the ADA’s Q3 dental-economy data, where reimbursement pressure and weaker demand raised the ROI bar for new spending.

For technology vendors, the quarter also underscores the importance of distribution and installed workflow. Dentsply Sirona said its expanded U.S. dealer network is broadening customer access, while its filing says CAD/CAM and imaging inventory at distributors remains below historical averages. The next several quarters should help show whether lower channel inventory improves sell-through visibility or simply exposes softer end demand.

This distinction matters in a market where the boundaries between hardware, software and clinical workflow are converging. Avized’s 2026 dental technology market map describes how connected platforms can gain distribution advantages, but breadth only creates value when adoption and utilization follow.

What to watch next

U.S. connected-technology performance. The Americas decline in Connected Technology Solutions was the steepest regional result in the portfolio. A recovery in CAD/CAM and imaging would be an important sign that distributor changes are working through.

Implants and endodontics. Management cited progress in these priority areas, but the reported segment results remain negative. Investors should look for sustained organic growth rather than isolated product or channel gains.

Cash conversion. Third-quarter operating cash flow fell to $32 million from $79 million, and free cash flow was zero. The company attributed the decline primarily to unfavorable working capital.

Margin quality. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 17.3%, down 110 basis points, even with the $39 million inventory-estimate benefit. Future quarters will provide a cleaner view without an equivalent recurring adjustment.

The next phase of the operating plan. Management is continuing its Return-to-Growth Action Plan, including sales-force, clinical-education and innovation investments. The market will need evidence that those investments improve volumes and cash generation, not just access and activity.

That is the central takeaway for operators and vendors. In a dental economy where buyers remain selective, scale and product breadth are not enough on their own. The strongest proof will be measurable adoption, repeatable organic growth and cash conversion—the same operating discipline highlighted in Avized’s analysis of dental’s next value-creation cycle.

Primary sources

• Dentsply Sirona — Third Quarter 2026 Results
• Dentsply Sirona — Q3 2026 Form 10-Q

Avized’s market implications are editorial analysis. Financial results, segment performance and management explanations are attributed to Dentsply Sirona.