ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) – With its three New Jersey casinos being eyed by potential buyers, Trump Entertainment Resorts on Thursday said its first quarter loss shrunk, despite increasing competition from slot parlors in Pennsylvania and New York.

The Atlantic City-based company reported a loss of $8.1 million, or 26 cents per share, in the three months ended March 31. That compared with a loss of $9.7 million, or 32 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

The company, which operates the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, and the Trump Marina Hotel Casino, reported first-quarter revenue of $234.3 million, down from $237.7 million a year ago.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected, on average, a loss of 25 cents per share, and revenue of $238.5 million.

“The revenue decline due to new competition provided a minor setback, and our management team continues to work hard in a very competitive promotional environment to lower marketing and general administrative expenses in order to bring our margins closer in line with our Atlantic City competitors,” James B. Perry, the company’s president and CEO, said in a statement.

In March, Trump Entertainment Resorts hired Merrill Lynch to help it explore strategic alternatives, which could include a possible sale.

The company did not conduct a conference call Thursday to discuss the first quarter earnings. It said it will do so only “at the conclusion of the previously announced Merrill Lynch engagement, or when the efforts of the engagement require further public disclosure.”

Donald Trump is the company’s chairman and largest stockholder.

Trump Entertainment Resorts continues to labor under significant debt, but the company said it had trimmed the figure by $4.9 million over the first quarter to just over $1.4 billion.

Trump casinos experienced a 1 percent decrease in overall gross gaming revenue, and a 4.6 percent decrease in slot revenue in the first quarter.

Those casinos, as well as the other eight in Atlantic City, have been buffeted by competition from newly opened slot parlors in the Philadelphia area, as well as New York, that have cut into territory Atlantic City once regarded as exclusively its own.

Positive developments cited by the company included a 12 percent increase in revenue from hotel rooms, food and beverages from cash-paying customers, and decreased payroll costs of nearly 5 percent.

Shares of Trump Entertainment fell 15 cents, or nearly 1 percent, to $16.30, in morning trading. It has traded from $15.97 to $23.80 over the past year.

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