Auction: Buy Yourself An Entire Sears Store

(RTTNews) - In a move to drive profitability, 16 Sears Holdings stores will be sold online. The online bidding will be coordinated by real estate firm Cushman and Wakefield and Real Insight Marketplace. The bidding will be on May 1.

All the properties for sale are attached to malls in suburban settings. According to reports, five out of sixteen are in Texas, while four are in Missouri. Three stores each are in Indiana and Ohio, while one is in Michigan. The company has been trying to improve financial flexibility.

Sears has been on a downward trend in sales, recording 28 percent decline in revenue and 15 percent drop in same store sales in the latest quarter. Earnings for the fourth quarter were $182 million or $1.69 per share. Revenue for the fourth quarter was $4.38 billion.

While announcing fourth quarter results, Edward Lampert, chairman and chief executive office of sears has said, "We also recognize that we need to do more if we are to deliver on our commitment to return to profitability in 2018. We will work to build on the progress we made in 2017, including ongoing actions to improve or close unprofitable stores and to unlock the value in our assets."

The company have been targeting cost reduction of $200 million in 2018, unrelated to store closures.