Associated Press |  R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co. said Wednesday
that its first-quarter net income more than tripled as expense cuts
outweighed a decline in sales.

The printing company earned $52.6 million, or 25 cents per share, for
the three months ended March 31. That’s up from last year’s profit of
$13.9 million, or 7 cents per share.

But the most recent quarter and the year-earlier one included a series of one-time charges from restructuring.

Excluding those items, R.R. Donnelley earned $69.5 million, or 33 cents per share, compared to last year’s adjusted profit of $49.2 million, or 24 cents per share.

Revenue slipped less than 2 percent, to $2.42 billion.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected the Chicago company to earn 30 cents per share with revenue of $2.41 billion. Those estimates typically exclude one-time adjustments.

“The benefits of our diverse product offerings and the actions taken to improve our cost structure have driven our higher operating margins,” CEO Thomas J. Quinlan III said in a statement. “While the economic outlook remains uncertain, we approach the balance of the year with tempered enthusiasm.”

R.R. Donnelley shares rose 60 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $21.62, in afternoon trading Wednesday.