Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc., the Canadian company that is in the midst of a hostile takeover bid for Casey’s General Stores Inc., announced record net income for the first quarter of its fiscal year.

Couche-Tard said it earned $129.5 million for the quarter ended July 18, an increase of $38.4 million, or 42 percent, from the first quarter of fiscal 2010. The company, which is based in Laval, Quebec, said same-store merchandise sales increased 4.4 percent in its U.S. stores and 6.6 percent in Canada. Couche-Tard says it is the largest convenience store operator in North America, with 5,878 outlets in the two countries.

Motor fuel gross margin increased 3.69 cents a gallon to 19.12 cents, Couche-Tard said, with same-store volume up 1.1 percent in the United States and 5.4 percent in Canada.

Couche-Tard has sought to buy Ankeny-based Casey’s since October 2009, first through contacts with Robert Myers, Casey’s president and CEO, then through a stock offer announced in April.

The two companies have been engaged in what on the surface appears to be a bitter fight, with Casey’s developing a “poison pill” defense that would significantly increase the costs of a takeover and Couche-Tard claiming that Casey’s officers and directors are protecting their stake in the company at the expense of a potential increase in shareholder value should the sale be completed.

Last last week, Casey’s announced the preliminary findings of a stock buyback plan that was another attempt to thwart the takeover. Casey’s took on more than $500 million in debt to purchase nearly 26 percent of its outstanding common stock at $38 a share.

Under a tender offer scheduled to expire Aug. 30, Couche-Tard is offering $36.75 a share for all of Casey’s stock.

In addition, the two sides are engaged in a proxy fight for control of Casey’s board of directors. They will meet in federal court Wednesday, Sept. 1. Casey’s is seeking an injunction that would stop the takeover, and it wants more detail on Couche-Tard’s purchase of nearly 2 million shares of Casey’s stock.