FORT WORTH, Texas–First-quarter net income for Pier 1 Imports totaled $7.7 million, down 74 percent from net income in last year’s first quarter.

According to a company statement, last year’s first-quarter net of $29.3 million resulted largely from a gain of $47.8 million from the repurchase of debt. Pier 1 actually recorded an operating loss of $26.7 million in the first quarter of last year, compared to operating income for this year of $8.3 million. The retailer managed to trim selling, general and administrative expenses by 4.3 percent, and boosted its gross margin by 719 basis points to 37.4 percent.

Pier 1’s net sales finished the first quarter at $306.3 million, up 8.9 percent over the first quarter of last year. This included an impressive 14.3 percent pickup in same-store sales.

Alex Smith, president and chief executive officer, noted that the operating profit Pier 1 managed marked the first time it had achieved first-quarter operating profit in six years. Store traffic, conversion rate and average ticket also increased in the quarter, Smith said.