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Deltex Medical (LON:DEMG) said its shift to fast-growing international markets is starting to bear fruit but warned NHS business remained a challenge.
The blood flow monitoring group saw US revenues rise 28% to £608,000 from £476,000 in the half year to June, with 740 more probes sold than the same period in 2014.
Nigel Keen, chairman, said: “Our objective for the current phase of developing our US business is to have established by the middle of 2016, 30 accounts that are using at least 100 probes a month or are on track to do so.”
To this end, the firm has doubled its sales team in the US, with twelve hospitals now signed up and 20 expected by the end of the year.
Ewan Philips, chief executive, told Proactive: “The states are better at innovation it’s harder to get going but when it does it [growth] is much quicker.
“The next phase of growth will take us clients from 10 to 30 and we expect US sales to go ahead of the UK.”
But UK sales retreated 23% to around £1.1mln from £1.5mln in 2014, due to NHS de-stocking and uncertainty surrounding the general election.
Keen, said: “The further decline in surgical probe revenues in the UK is disappointing.
“While the board is optimistic both that our UK business is over the worst of very difficult market circumstances in the UK and that we will benefit from a number of innovations and initiatives, it is also concerned to limit future uncertainty around our UK results.”
Probe sales in the UK at the start of the second half have started marginally ahead of 2014, the company added.
Philips said the UK probe market could have “bottomed out,” adding that “doctors truly believe in what we are trying to do and are forcing it through in the UK.”
Overall, sales were slightly lower to £2.7mln from £3mln the year before while pre-tax losses widened to £2.2mln from £1.5mln.
Cash available at 30 June was £1.3mln.
Shares eased 5.7% to 4.95p today.