Edward S. Lampert, the hedge fund manager who serves as Sears Holdings‘ chief executive, remains the struggling retailer’s biggest shareholder.
But his firm, ESLPartners, has cut the size of its stake, disclosing in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that it now owns 48.4 percent of its shares, down from 55.4 percent.
In a statement, Mr. Lampert said that his hedge fund had distributed 7.4 million shares in Sears to investors who wanted to withdraw money from his firm. The mogul added that he had not sold any of his personal holdings.
“My significant personal ownership in the company is a sign of my confidence and alignment with all shareholders,†he said.
Still, the move comes amid the latest efforts by Mr. Lampert to turn around the long-struggling department store’s fate. It was the hedge fund manager who created the modern Sears by orchestrating the $12 billion merger of Kmart and the venerable retailer, whose roots stretch back 120 years.
But a chronic lack of investment in its stores has left the company especially wounded to the changes that have battered department stores in recent years.
Mr. Lampert, who long had a big say in Sears’ strategy, took over the chief executive role early this year and began devising its latest self-help plan.
Last month, the company announced plans to shrink itself by spinning off two of its best-known brands, Lands’ End and Sears Auto Center.
Though the company pitched the strategic shift as a way to focus on its core Sears and Kmart brands, it’s unclear how those essential businesses will continue to fare. Two weeks ago, Sears reported a third-quarter loss of $534 million, up 7 percent from the same time a year ago.
Sears has also closed 300 stores over the past three years, sold off real estate in North America and laid off employees.
But Mr. Lampert, who is pivoting the retailer toward a membership-centered business model, has claimed some progress in his plan. In its third-quarter results, the company said that 70 percent of its sales were made to participants in its Shop Your Way program, up from 65 percent in the prior quarter.
The retailer also said that it was on track to generate $2 billion in available cash and credit lines in its current fiscal year, four times its original target of $500 million.
