LAS VEGAS (AP) - Casino equipment maker Bally Technologies Inc. said Thursday its fiscal first-quarter profit jumped 42 percent on strong growth in gaming equipment and systems revenue to top Wall Street expectations.

For the quarter ended Sept. 30, Bally Technologies earned $30.3 million, or 52 cents per share, up from $21.3 million, or 37 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Excluding one-time items, the company earned 56 cents per share.

The company's revenue climbed almost 26 percent to $237.4 million.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, whose estimates generally exclude special items, expected a profit of 48 cents per share on revenue of $220.6 million.

Bally's gaming equipment and systems revenue rose 29 percent to $159.6 million, while gaming operations revenue increased 25 percent to $67.8 million. But expenses also rose, increasing 24 percent to $183.9 million, mostly because of a rise in the cost of gaming equipment and systems.

The company said it shipped 6,598 new gaming sale units during the quarter.