Pier 1 Imports
After announcing that it would be closing 45 stores, Pier 1 Imports filed bankruptcy. A Pier 1 Imports sign is seen on April 19, 2019 in Miami, Florida. The company announced that it's shuttering as many as 45 locations this year or up to 15% of stores if they are unable to reach performance goals, sales targets, and reductions in occupancy and other costs. Getty Images/Joe Raedle

After announcing that it would be closing 45 of its 973 stores in 2019, Pier 1 Imports (PIR) may also be heading towards a reported bankruptcy restructuring.

The home goods retailer was put on warning by S&P Global Ratings on Wednesday as the credit rating agency said, that Pier 1’s “potential for a bankruptcy filing or debt restructuring is continuing to increase.”

The announcement by S&P is based on Pier 1’s declining store performance, which continues “to deteriorate significantly.”

The credit agency said that “The negative outlook reflects that we do not see a path for Pier 1 to return to profitability in the coming six months to one year, even when factoring in the full impact of planned performance improvements.”

S&P has also downgraded Pier 1’s credit rating as it finds more concerns about the retailer’s ability to pay back its creditors. S&P moved Pier 1 from a credit rating of CCC+ to CCC-.

Pier 1 is not the only retailer that has succumbed to store closures and the pressures of bankruptcy. In 2019, alone, Charlotte Russe, Payless Shoes, Shopko, and Gymboree have all announced Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filings.

Other retailers such as JC Penney, Fred’s, Kays, Zales, Jared, Family Dollar, Gap, Victoria’s Secret, H&M, and Office Depot have announced store closures in 2019.

Shares of Pier 1 Imports stock were down 4.9016 percent as of 12:35 p.m. ET on Thursday.

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