Sears Raises Cash (SHLD)

Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ: SHLD) is raising cash.  The turnaround retail giant is selling $500 million in senior secured notes due in 2018, and concurrently it is selling $165 million in notes in a private placement to its domestic pension plan.

Eddie Lampert and friends plan to use the proceeds from the offering to pay down debt under its senior secured revolving credit facility.  The company also listed use of funds as being for working capital requirements of its retail businesses, cap-ex, and for general corporate purposes (which includes common stock repurchases) and for pension funding obligations.

These notes will be sold only to qualified institutions under Rule 144A  and to certain non-U.S. persons in accordance with Regulation S, and the notes will not be registered and may not be offered or sold without registration unless certain criteria and filings are made.

As of July 31, Sears had $1.199 billion in cash and equivalents; it also had just over $10 billion in current liabilities and $1.378 billion in long-term debt and $4.758 billion in “Other Liabilities.”  Its market cap is $8.02 billion and the share closing price on Monday of $72.50 compares to a 52-week range of $59.21 to $125.42.

JON C. OGG