(Alliance News) - Nexxen International Ltd on Monday reaffirmed its guidance for the full year, following a solid first quarter in which the company's loss narrowed on increased revenue and lower costs.

For the three months ended March 31, the Tel Aviv-based advertising technology company reported a pretax loss of USD7.1 million, narrowed from a USD14.4 million loss in the first quarter of 2023.

Revenue rose 3.8% to USD74.4 million from USD71.7 million a year prior.

Programmatic revenue reached a record USD65.6 million in the quarter, up from USD62.5 million.

Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased 34% to USD11.9 million from USD8.9 million.

Nexxen's diluted earnings per share swung to USD0.01 from a loss of USD0.03.

Total operating costs for the first quarter dropped 6.2% to USD66.4 million from USD70.8 million.

Nexxen also repaid its USD99.1 million long-term debt in full during the quarter.

With the resulting increased liquidity, Nexxen said it intends to prioritise capital allocation on share repurchases, "strategic internal growth" as well as other business needs.

In early May, the company launched a USD50 million share repurchase programme, set to run until November 1 or once the maximum amount has been reached.

Once completed, Nexxen said it intends to evaluate the potential for further buybacks.

Ofer Druker, chief executive officer at Nexxen, said: "Positioned as a go-to strategic partner at the forefront of the TV and video AdTech ecosystems, Nexxen is poised to capitalize on a growing opportunity in an improving market."

Nexxen also reaffirmed its guidance for the full-year.

In 2024, the company anticipates an ex-TAC contribution, excluding traffic acquisition costs, of between USD340 and USD345 million, compared to USD314.2 million in 2023.

Full-year adjusted Ebitda is also expected to reach around USD100 million, a 20% jump from USD83.2 million.

Shares in Nexxen were up 4.7% at 236.03 pence each in London on Monday afternoon.

By Hugh Cameron, Alliance News reporter

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