Sears hints at revival while posting another loss

Sears Holdings Corp. posted another loss in its latest quarter, but said sales turned positive this summer. That sent shares up in late trading.

The company has now reported a loss in six of its last eight quarters. Same-store sales, a key gauge of performance, also shrank. But Chief Executive Officer Edward Lampert, whose hedge fund is looking at buying Sears's Kenmore brand and a home-improvement unit, said he was encouraged by improvements in July and August.

"We have yet to achieve our goal of returning the company to profitability," Lampert said. "We continue to close unprofitable stores, and we are hopeful that we can stabilize our store base at a meaningful level in the near future."

It's unclear how much Sears is being helped by strengthening consumer confidence and a healthy economy - factors that have underpinned the recent success of merchants like Walmart Inc. and Target Corp. To stanch its continuous cash bleed, Lampert is selling assets and slashing expenses. He's also extended almost $2.5 billion in credit to the company, according to an estimate by Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Noel Hebert.

Shares of the Hoffman Estates, Illinois-based company rose as much as 20 percent to $1.45 in late trading Thursday. The stock has lost two-thirds of its value this year through Thursday's close.

Lampert has closed hundreds of unprofitable stores - with about 150 more slated to be shuttered this year - and cut more than $1 billion in annual expenses. But losses have continued to pile up to more than $11 billion since 2012. In the meantime, the company has put more assets on the block, including its Kenmore brand for the second time in two years.

Lampert's hedge fund, ESL Investments Inc. made a $470 million offer for the brand and a home-improvement unit last month. The company is "beyond desperation at this point," Hebert said of the bid. "This is the calculated extraction of residual value of the estate."

Directors are still evaluating the possibility of selling Kenmore and other assets, Sears said on Thursday.

There has been some good news. An Aug. 28 announcement that it's expanding its installation program for tires ordered on Amazon.com Inc. nationally sent Sears shares up 13 percent that day.