From www.bizjournals.com- Adult-nightclub operator VCG Holding Corp. Monday posted a profit of $652,173, or 4 cents a share, for the first quarter of 2009, down from $1,372,334, or 8 cents a share, in the same period a year earlier.

The Lakewood-based company (NASDAQ: VCGH) said its revenue was $13.8 million in the three months ending March 31, up 3.4 percent from $13.3 million in Q1 2008.

Operating expenses increased 11.2 percent, to $11.6 million in the first quarter from $10.4 million in the year-ago quarter. The company cited increases in taxes and permit fees, legal fees, rent and other costs.

VCG’s 2008 results were restated.

“Our performance for the first quarter included higher revenues, profitability, solid operating and free cash flows, and a strong balance sheet,” Troy Lowrie, VCG’s chairman/CEO, said in a statement.

He said the company’s “high-amenity ‘A’ clubs continue to struggle in this sluggish economy,” offset by the performance of other venues and cost-saving measures.

VCG owns the Diamond Cabaret and La Boheme adult clubs in Denver as well as clubs in Colorado Springs; Anaheim, Calif.; Indianapolis; St. Louis; Fort Worth and Dallas; Raleigh, N.C.; Minneapolis; Louisville, Ky.; Miami; and Portland, Maine.