Staar Surgical Co. reduced its fourth-quarter loss and said that 2010 was the first time in 11 years that it had a profitable year.

The Monrovia company, which makes corrective lenses that are implanted in eyes, late Tuesday reported a net loss of $691,000 (-2 cents per share), compared with a loss of $1.5 million (-4 cents) a year earlier. Revenue rose 8 percent to $14.4 million.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters on average expected the company to report per-share profit of 1 cent on $14.2 million in revenue.

U.S. sales were down 10.5 percent to $3.4 million, but international sales were up nearly 16 percent to $11 million, with particularly strong sales in Japan and China. Sales and marketing expenses rose 18 percent to $4.7 million as the company increased its U.S. direct sales force and did more promotional spending in the United States and Japan.

For the full year, Staar reported net income of $53 million, or breakeven on a per share basis. The company had an unusually strong first quarter, and had more shares outstanding at the end of the year than in 2009..

“With our continued focus on core product revenues with higher margins, we achieved a gross profit margin of nearly 65 percent, the highest level in 11 years,” Chief Executive Barry G. Caldwell said in a statement. “We were cash flow positive during the fourth quarter and our cash position increased by $900,000, to $9.5 million at year end. These achievements were accomplished despite the continued challenging economy.”

Shares were down 16 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $5.59 in midday trading on the Nasdaq.