MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Jan. 21 -- Spectra-Physics reported net sales of $41.2 million for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 1999, compared with $45.5 million for the same period in 1998. The company's book-to-bill ratio was 1.15, compared with 1.11 for the third quarter of fiscal 1999 and 0.89 a year ago. Net income for the quarter was $1.6 million, or 9 cents per diluted share, compared with $3.3 million, or 21 cents per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 1998. After a challenging first three quarters, we're pleased to have regained our revenue momentum and returned to solid profitability in the fourth quarter, said Patrick L. Edsell, Spectra-Physics' chairman, president and CEO. Our initiatives to focus on high-growth opportunities in telecommunications and other strategic markets have begun to yield results. We have entered the new fiscal year with a strong order flow and look forward to further strengthening our business through 2000 and beyond. Last week the company announced that it had signed its first multi-year sales agreement for 200-GHz thin-film filters -- part of Spectra-Physics' Zeroshift line of passive optical components -- with a major manufacturer of dense-WDM devices for the telecommunications market.