Henry Schein loses IDEXX pet diagnostic line

IDEXX Laboratories Inc. will stop distributing its veterinary products through Melville-based Henry Schein Inc., ending a relationship that accounted for about $150 million in revenue for Schein, the two companies said Friday.

In a government filing, Henry Schein, a distributor of health care products, said the IDEXX lines represent 4 to 6 cents in annual earnings per share. Schein's overall revenue in 2013 was $9.6 billion, with veterinary products representing about a quarter of that.

In midafternoon trading, shares of Henry Schein, Long Island's largest company by revenue, slid $1.28, or just over 1 percent, to $117.95.

A Henry Schein spokeswoman declined to comment beyond the government filing, in which the company said losses from the IDEXX account could be offset by other brands it expects to have available in 2015.

Henry Schein said it expects that the change will have "substantially no impact on its 2014 results."

IDEXX, based in Westbrook, Maine, said it would distribute its dog and cat diagnostic products directly to veterinarians. Friday the company also announced its second quarter earnings. Shares of IDEXX lost 3.3 percent, or $4.39, to $128.66 in midafternoon trading.