Premier Picks Auditor

Premier Laser Systems Inc. said it switched auditors, replacing Price Waterhouse LLP with Ernst and Young LLP.

Premier, which makes and markets medical lasers, said Ernst and Young submitted the winning bid in a competition for a three-year contract to provide auditing and tax-consulting services. Price Waterhouse, the company’s auditor since 1994, didn’t bid on the new contract, said Michael L. Hiebert, Premier’s chief financial officer.

Price Waterhouse’s most recent report on the company, issued last May, noted that the company’s recurring losses from operations raised “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue as a going concern. The company posted a nine-month loss of $2.7 million on $3.9 million in revenue, compared with a loss of $3.6 million on revenue of $1 million a year earlier.

Heibert said the company didn’t have any issues of disagreement with Price Waterhouse auditors. Price Waterhouse officials couldn’t be reached for comment.