Penny PayDay: Sears Holdings Corp

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Thursday, May 17, 2012

Thursday’s biggest gaining and declining stocks

Orlando, FL 5/17/12 (StreetBeat) – Below are some of the stocks making significant moves in Thursday’s U.S. trading:

Gainers

Sears Holdings Corp. shares (Nasdaq: SHLD +9.83%) jumped more than 12%. The company swung to a profit for the first quarter ended April 28 on a boost from shedding some real estate, part of slimming-down process that the retailer signaled Thursday it intends to continue as it revealed plans to trim its ownership stake in Sears Canada.

Boyd Gaming Corp. shares (NYSE: BYD +5.73%) were up 6.7%. Late Wednesday, the company revealed plans to buy Peninsula Gaming LLC in a $1.45 billion deal that will expanding its reach in the Midwest and South. Boyd said the deal to acquire the privately held casino operator is expected to close by the end of this year.

U.S.-listed shares of Pansoft Co. Ltd. (Nasdaq: PSOF +23.27%) rallied 23% after the China-based software provider for the oil and gas industry said it agreed to be taken private at a cash price of $4.15 a share. The buyer is Timesway Group Ltd., controlled by Chairman Hugh Wang and CEO Guoqiang Lin.

Losers

Dollar Tree Inc. shares (Nasdaq: DLTR -4.55%) fell 4%. The deep discounter posted results for the first quarter than came in better than expected but cautioned on second-quarter results.

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Thursday’s biggest gaining and declining stocks

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Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Sears (Nasdaq: SHLD) Shares Soar 9% as 1Q Sales Stabilize

Tallahassee, FL 5/1/12 (StreetBeat) -- Embattled retailer Sears Holdings (Nasdaq: SHLD: 58.39, +4.61, +8.57%) said on Tuesday it anticipates posting a first-quarter operating profit later this month as the sale of underperforming stores generated cash and declines in same-store sales moderated.

Wall Street sent shares of Sears, which is the parent of both its namesake stores and Kmart, surging about 9% on the numbers.

Eddie Lampert’s Sears said it expects to disclose first-quarter profit from continuing operations of $155 million, or $1.46 a share, to $195 million, or $1.84 a share. That would mark a dramatic improvement from a year earlier when it lost $165 million, or $1.53 a share, from continuing operations.

Analysts had been projecting a loss of $1.69 a share for the first quarter, but it’s not clear if those figures are comparable.

Hoffman Estates, Ill.-based Sears said the new guidance includes about $235 million of gains related to the sale of certain stores in the U.S. and Canada that generated $440 million in cash proceeds.

The company also projected adjusted Ebitda, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, of $135 million to $195 million, compared with $58 million the year before.

Overall same-store sales are seen slipping 1.3% in the first quarter, compared with 3.6% the year earlier and 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Boosted by double-digit jumps in apparel and footwear sales, Sears domestic sales are expected to fall just 1%.

Kmart same-store sales are forecasted to have slid 1.6% as increases in apparel and footwear were offset by sinking consumer electronics sales.

The cautiously optimistic news from Sears sent its shares leaping 9.58% to $59.20 Tuesday morning, putting them on track to build on their stellar 2012 surge of 70%. Despite the gains so far this year, Sears is off 36% over the past 12 months.

Last year Sears suffered a $3.1 billion loss, leading management to reveal plans to raise $750 million by selling and spinning off a slew of stores.

Lampert, the chairman of Sears, acquired the retailer in 2005 but has struggled to turn around its recent string of losses.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Thursday, February 23, 2012

Sears (Nasdaq: SHLD) quells fears about liquidity; shares soar

Orlando, FL 2/23/12 (StreetBeat) -- Sears Holdings Corp (Nasdaq: SHLD) announced steps to reassure investors about its ability to pay down debt, sending its shares soaring 16 percent in early trading.

The operator of Sears department stores and the Kmart discount chain said it intends to separate its Sears Hometown and Outlet businesses and certain hardware stores through a rights offering expected to raise $400 million to $500 million.

The rights will entitle stockholders to purchase shares in the combined Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores businesses and certain hardware stores and will be transferred to holders of Sears Holdings common stock.

Sears also said it had reached a deal to sell 11 stores to General Growth Properties Inc.

The actions come at a time when business lenders such as CIT Group Inc are keeping Sears on a tight leash.

"The actions of the asset sales and business separations of the outlets and hometown stores is management showing the Street that it can pull liquidity levers if it so chooses," Morningstar analyst Paul Swinand said.

Sears expects the real estate deal to generate $270 million in cash proceeds in the next 60 days and the separation of its hometown, outlet and hardware stores businesses to generate between $400 million and $500 million via a rights offering.

Sears stressed that it had substantial liquidity and strong assets even as it needs to improve its operating performance.

"It is important to note that we are an asset rich enterprise with multiple resources that dash at our disposal, which we believe provides us with ample financial flexibility," Chief Financial Officer Robert Schriesheim said on a rare conference call on Thursday.

The company's sales have fallen every year since it was formed by hedge fund manager Edward Lampert in 2005 through the merger of two of the most iconic American chains in an $11 billion deal.

Sears reported a huge quarterly net loss on Thursday after a poor showing during the holiday season. The net loss was $2.4 billion, or $22.47 a share, after a number of one-time charges, compared with a profit of $374 million, or $3.43 a share, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time items, Sears earned 54 cents a share.

Sales fell $518 million to $12.5 billion for the quarter that ended January 28. Sales at its U.S. stores open at least a year fell 3.4 percent, including a 4.1 percent decline at its namesake department stores and a 2.7 percent fall at Kmart.

On Wednesday, the company's Canadian unit, Sears Canada Inc, posted a more than 50 percent drop in quarterly earnings.

"One of my big concerns is still Sears Canada, which was a jewel but is now looking like it's going south too," Swinand said.

Sears Holdings, home to well-known brands such as Craftsman tools and Kenmore appliances, is a victim of the weak economy, stiff competition and its own missteps.

Analysts have often criticized Sears for relying too heavily on cost-cutting to boost profits, instead of upgrading stores and improving customer service. Problems include understaffed stores, poor signage, dowdy merchandise, inconsistent inventory and, at Kmart, uncompetitive pricing, they said.

Sears also faces cut-throat competition from the likes of Home Depot, Lowe's, Wal-Mart, Target and Best Buy, as well as department store peers such as JC Penney, Macy's and Kohl's.

In late December, the company said it would close as many as 120 of its Kmart and Sears discount and department stores.

Sears shares were up $7.99, or about 16 percent, at $60.11 in early Nasdaq trading.

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