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Mattel Inc. (MAT) shares jumped Friday as the toy maker reported a wider first-quarter net loss but showed 50-year-old Barbie is still one of the hottest-selling dolls on the market.

Mattel and rival toy makers are coming off the worst holiday shopping season in recent years, with mainstays seeing sales slump and international sales, previously relied upon to offset plateauing U.S. sales, sagging as well.

While results fell short for the world's largest toy-maker, analysts were still impressed by the performance and shares jumped 13% to $14.67. Earlier they rose to $14.75, the highest they've traded since the last day in January.

"It's hard to call this a good quarter with sales down sharply and EPS at the worst first-quarter loss in at least 10 years," Needham analysts said in a note, "but it was definitely better than we expected."

The company reported a net loss of $51 million, or 14 cents a share, compared with a prior-year net loss of $46.6 million, or 13 cents a share.

Revenue decreased 15% to $785.6 million. The drop was 6% domestically and 23% abroad, with 13 percentage points due to the stronger dollar. A late Easter holiday also contributed to the slip, the company said.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters most recently were looking for a loss of 13 cents on revenue of $796 million.

Gross margin rose to 44% from 43.2% despite the sales drop.

Barbie products, which account for about one-fifth of total sales, fell 5%, as a double-digit domestic increase was more than offset by international declines, hurt by the stronger dollar. Mattel spent much of the year celebrating, in full pink, the blonde icon's 50th birthday and forever-young presence. They built her a real Malibu dream house, gave her a Facebook page and even had her tweeting on Twitter, all of which analysts said helped deliver the toy's strongest quarter in years.

"Barbie was the lead toy in (the first quarter) for not only Mattel but the industry," Sterne Agee analysts said in a note. "This momentum may continue with other fashion doll lines faltering at this time."

Sales of other girls' brands slumped 27% on declines in Polly Pocket and High School Musical doll lines. American Girl Brands, Mattel's high-end doll unit which had been expanding, saw sales decrease 4% reflecting the later timing of Easter.

Fisher Price sales were down 17%. In the Wheels category, which includes Hot Wheels, Matchbox and Tyco R/C brands, sales fell 14%, as the prior year was boosted by products tied to the "Speed Racer" movie.

Mattel is managing to conserve cash, citing protection of its dividend as a priority in February. It slashed 2009 capital spending plans by a quarter and plans to avoid acquisitions, while also eliminating 3% of its global work force in November.

Chairman and Chief Executive Robert A. Eckert said the results met the company's expectations and that Mattel would continue to manage costs to reflect lower demand.

-By Tess Stynes and David Benoit, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-2473; tess.stynes@dowjones.com