Pier 1 Profit Tops Estimates, To Close 100 Stores In Three Years; Stock Up 7%

(RTTNews) - Home furnishings retailer Pier 1 Imports Inc (PIR) on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $33.1 million or $0.37 per share compared with $42.6 million or $0.41 per share last year.

Excluding items, adjusted earnings for the quarter were $0.39 per share.

Revenues for the quarter were higher at $543.6 million compared with $515.8 million in the prior year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimated earnings of $0.36 per share on revenues of $548.7 million for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Gross margin for the quarter slid to 39.4% from 41.6% a year ago, and operating margin fell to 9.8% from 13.6%, hurting profits, the company said.

For the first quarter of fiscal 2016, the company expects earnings of $0.07 to $0.08 per share and comparable sales growth of about 4%. Analysts expect earnings of $0.12 per share.

For the full year 2016, the company expects earnings of $0.83 to $0.87 per share and comparable sales growth in the mid-single digits. Analysts expect earnings of $0.90 per share.

The company said it plans to close about 100 stores over the next three years, primarily through natural lease expirations and relocations. This, it said, is part of efforts to optimize its store portfolio to drive growth through its omni-channel platform, reduce occupancy and payroll costs and improve efficiency.

Pier 1 Imports also declared a $0.07 per share quarterly cash dividend, an increase of 17% from the prior dividend.

Shares of the company gained 6.80% at $13.51 in after-hours trade on the NYSE.