IRVINE, Calif. — Explaining their recent financial performance as a continued recovery from the "Great Recession," executives from Consumer Portfolio Services detailed a decline in revenue and pretax loss during the first quarter of 2010.

CPS indicated that it posted a first-quarter revenue total of $44.6 million. The sum represented a decrease of approximately $21.5 million, or 32.5 percent, as compared to its revenue total from the first quarter of last year. That figure was $66.1 million.

The company revealed that it decreased its total operating expenses by 24.3 percent during the quarter that ended March 31. The figure in this category dropped from $66.6 million in the 2009 first quarter to $50.4 million, a decline of $16.2 million.

However, executives conceded that the company sustained a pretax loss for the 2010 first quarter of $5.8 million or 33 cents per diluted share. They reported a net loss in the same time frame last year, too, but it was much lower. The company's loss in the first quarter of 2009 was $0.5 million, or 3 cents per diluted share.

Taking a look at some other financial activity from the quarter, CPS indicated that it purchased $17.4 million of contracts from dealers. The amount is much higher than what executives noted as purchase activity in two particular quarters of last year. CPS made $6.1 million worth of purchases during the fourth quarter of 2009 and $1.1 million in the first quarter.

CPS disclosed that its managed receivables totaled $1.044 billion as of March 31. The amount represented a 29.9-percent decline from the figure the company reported at the close of last year's first quarter. At that point, it stood $444.3 million higher at $1.488 billion.

Elsewhere, the company stated annualized net charge-offs for the first quarter of 2010 were 12.19 percent of the average owned portfolio. Executives compared that percentage to the first quarter of last year when it was 11.59 percent.

CPS also mentioned a drop in delinquencies greater than 30 days for the year-ago quarter, including repossession inventory. The decline went from 6.73 percent to 5.94 percent.  Executives emphasized that it's the first time that year-over-year portfolio delinquency levels have improved since the company's managed portfolio began to decrease in 2008.

Charles Bradley Jr., chairman and chief executive officer, offered a broad assessment of the company's performance, stressing the positive gains the operation enjoyed during the first quarter.

"We continue to make progress in our recovery from the Great Recession," Bradley insisted. "We almost tripled our new contract purchases in the first quarter over the fourth quarter of 2009 while maintaining similar yields and credit metrics."

"And the improving economy has finally shown up in our asset performance statistics as delinquencies improved versus the first quarter of last year," Bradley went on to say. "We would expect to see similar comparisons going forward for net charge-offs."

Bradley closed his comments by reiterating other company activity and how it relates to the industry as a whole.

"As we have previously reported, we closed a second $50 million funding facility in the first quarter as the capital markets continue to thaw," he stated.

"In addition, the first insured securitization transaction in almost two years closed last month," Bradley continued. "This was the primary securitization structure that we used in prior years, and it demonstrates that more funding options are becoming available in the marketplace."