Madrid, April 9 - Technology services company Lleida.net (BME:LLN) (EPA:ALLLN) (OTCQX:LLEIF) increased its gross margin in the first quarter of 2023 by six per cent over the same period last year, or EUR169,000.

In this first quarter, sales declined by 10 per cent compared with the first quarter of 2022, closing at €4.69 million.

This decline was mainly due to a decline in SMS consumption. The Wholesale SMS market suffered a setback in the first quarter of 2023, with sales down 19 per cent, while commercial SMS sales saw a decline in sales of 25 per cent.

The natural decline in the SMS market has been replaced by growth in SaaS services.

Sales of Software as a Service line now represent 48% of Lleida.net's total sales, up from 41% in 2022. In the period, the growth of the line known as Other SaaS Products - which includes service licences, email, timestamp, phone number and identity verification transactions - stood out, increasing its weight in total sales by 31%. International sales now account for 53 per cent of total group revenue, which has also seen a 15 per cent increase in absolute customer backlog compared to the same quarter in 2022, reaching around 1,800.

EBITDA for the quarter stood at 389 thousand euros, remaining at levels of the same period last year. Sisco Sapena, CEO and founder of Lleida.net explained that "although the first quarter is always the weakest of each year, we are satisfied with the increase in gross margin and the expansion of our customer base.

Despite the challenges in the SMS market, we have managed to diversify our revenue sources and maintain sustainable growth". The group's financial debt decreased by 183 thousand euros in the quarter, derived from the repayment of loans made thanks to cash from the group's organic activity.

The company, founded in 1995 and listed on Euronext Growth in Paris, BME Growth in Madrid and OTCQX in New York, has obtained recognition in 300 patents worldwide in more than 60 countries.