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John Malone's Liberty Global PLC on Monday reported a narrower first-quarter loss and higher revenue, bolstered by its Belgian mobile-phone operator BASE Company acquisition.

Liberty Global, which has been spending heavily amid an expansion push, focuses its operations in some of Europe's largest markets, including Germany and the U.K., where it owns Virgin Media Inc.

"The standout performer this quarter was Virgin Media in the U.K., where record low churn and new build investments contributed to our best [first quarter results] since 2010," Chief Executive Mike Fries said in a statement.

In February, the international cable operator disclosed plans to combine its business in the Netherlands with Vodafone Group PLC, a joint venture valued at roughly â,¬3.5 billion, based on combined revenue and capital expenditure after integration costs.

The Vodafone deal, which Liberty Global expects to close by year's end, follows Liberty Global's buyout bid for Cable & Wireless Communications PLC, a deal that would widen its presence in the Caribbean, Panama, Monaco and the Seychelles. The CWC deal is expected to close next week, subject to court approval.

Liberty Global, which targets an additional $3.7 billion in stock repurchases by the end of 2017, said it would end its share buyback moratorium after it closes the CWC deal.

Over all, Liberty Global reported a net loss of $369.1 million, compared with $537.5 million, a year earlier.

Revenue rose 1.6% to $4.59 billion, compared with analysts' projected $4.45 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.

In the latest period, Liberty Global added 170,700 subscribers, compared with 71,600 a year earlier. Excluding the effect of acquisitions, Liberty Global reported 155,900 more subscribers, compared with 68,400 a year earlier.

In 2015, Liberty Global added 1.1 million subscribers, or 869,900 adjusted for acquisitions.

Liberty Global, which Monday affirmed its financial projections for the year, ended the quarter with about $685 million in cash and $47.1 billion in debt.

Shares closed Monday at $37.36, down 22% over the past 12 months.

Write to Maria Armental at maria.armental@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 09, 2016 21:05 ET (01:05 GMT)

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