06:53 AM EDT, 07/12/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Velan ( VLNSF ) , a manufacturer of industrial valves, on Thursday said its first-quarter adjusted net loss narrowed on strong sales and an improvement in margin.

The first-quarter adjusted net loss came in at US$1 million, or US$0.05 per share, up from a loss of US$7.9 million, or US$0.37 per share.

Sales during the quarter increased to US$77.5 million from US$67.7 million. Adjusted EBITDA swung to US$3.9 million from a loss of US$3.3 million.

Gross margin also improved to 31% from 22%, the company said.

As at May 31, backlog stood at $528.3 million, up 7.5% from $491.5 million at the beginning of the fiscal year.