Patterson Companies Inc is a medical supplies conglomerate primarily in the business of veterinary and dental products (ranging from xray equipment to consumable products, dental consumables make up the biggest part of the dental industry). Since 2003, it has also distributed general medical rehabilitative devices like braces and wheel chairs. Traditionally a dental company, it diversified its business at the turn of the millennium when it acquired 55-year-old company, JA Webster Inc, a distributor of veterinary products. That business segment (now known as Patterson Veterinary) currently distributes equipment (diagnostic and surgical) and medicine (anaesthetics, vaccines). The company operates directly in only the US and Canada (in Canada through subsidiaries Sammons Preston Canada and Patterson Dental Canada).

In 2008 it was noted as having one of the lowest debt ratios among companies in the health care sector. Patterson was also a member of the Nasdaq-100 until December 10, 2010 when it and six other companies were replaced. The Nasdaq-100 is composed of the 100 largest non financial stocks traded on the Nasdaq.

Patterson is the distribution company for Sirona Dental Systems, one of the world's biggest dental equipment manufacturers until September 1st, 2017 when they will also sell to their competition Henry Schein . More recently the company has been active in making acquisitions abroad; On June 17, 2010 Patterson Medical purchased the rehabilitation part of Ireland-based DCC Healthcare (Days Healthcare, Physiomed and Ausmedic) in a move that increased Patterson Medical's revenue by 16.43% (US$70 million, fiscal year ended April 24, 2010). The new companies were added to its Homecraft Rolyan unit in the UK.

The company traces its roots through division Patterson Dental Supply back to one established in 1878 named Patterson Dental Company. It remained focused solely on the dental products market until the 21st century when it branched out into the veterinary supplies market through 2 large acquisitions, JA Webster in 2001 (92.5 million dollars) and ProVet in 2004. For about 130 years it dealt only in dental supplies. It began selling rehabilitation supplies in 2004 after acquiring Ability One Products Corporation followed by Medco the same year.

It went public on the Nasdaq in 1992 with an IPO of around 480 million dollars.

Key dates and events

Patterson Dental Supply, Inc, Patterson Veterinary Supply, Inc. (formerly Webster Veterinary Supply), and Patterson Medical Supply, Inc. comprise the three core segments of the company. Those core businesses branch out into many regional subsidiaries, most of which are based in the United States (except for a few Canadian ones like Sammons Preston Canada and Patterson Dental Canada (has 550 employees). The majority of business in Canada comes from Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. Software and hardware businesses are part of Patterson Dental.

Patterson Medical provides over 20,000 rehabilitation supplies, equipment and assistive living products.

Patterson Medical’s international operations consist of Homecraft in the United Kingdom and Kinetec in France. Homecraft is a supplier of aids to daily living and rehabilitation products in the United Kingdom. In France, Kinetec consists of two operations: the manufacturing and distribution of Continuous Passive Motions machines and distribution of Sammons Preston and Homecraft products.

For 2010 the last 3 rehabilitation companies (Days Healthcare, Physiomed and Ausmedic) were formerly part of DCC Plc a company that serves the UK market.

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In 2016, a security researcher named Justin Shafer found 22,000 patients data on an FTP Server owned by Patterson Dental. He was reportedly raided by the FBI.

In 2017, photographs captured by a former employee of a Texas blood bank that Patterson Veterinary distributed products from showed greyhounds under duress. PETA revealed pictures and video taken at The Pet Blood Bank showing kenneled dogs with open wounds, rotting teeth and severely overgrown toenails. According to The Washington Post, "Pet Blood Bank owner Shane Altizer did not deny that the images were taken there, but said they predated his 2015 purchase of the company or were “moment snapshots” unrepresentative of overall conditions now." A veterinarian who visited the facility earlier in the year said she found the dogs to be in satisfactory condition but after seeing the pictures, believed that “(T)he facility was ‘cleaned up’ before our touring...This certainly suggests that regional, state and/or federal regulation is warranted.”

On its website, Patterson said it had "ceased doing business" with the blood bank, which subsequently closed.