NEW YORK — Sears’ first-quarter loss narrowed but sales continue to slump as the retailer prepares the rollout of its real estate investment trust this week to raise cash.
Sears Holdings Corp., which operates Sears and Kmart stores, said that it expects the real estate investment trust that it is forming, Seritage Growth Properties, will be declared effective by the Securities & Exchange Commission this week.
Sears, based in Hoffman Estates, Ill., is planning to sell and lease back about 235 properties, most of them Sears and Kmart stores, to the REIT. The company expects $2.6 billion in proceeds. The transaction also includes the purchase of interest in its joint ventures. The chain closed more than 200 Sears and Kmart stores in 2014.
In April, Sears struck three real estate transactions, including getting $150 million from a joint venture with mall operator Macerich. It also has deals with General Growth Properties Inc. and Simon Property Group Inc. Before establishing the REIT, the retailer had been subletting some of its excess space to Forever21 and Whole Foods. With the new real estate maneuver, the company said it will create a mechanism to accelerate that move.
