Loss widens at Sears Holdings Corp.

Hoffman Estates, Ill.-based Sears Holdings Corp posted a third quarter net loss from continuing operations of $498 million, compared to a net loss of $410 million in the same quarter last year. 

Sears Domestic's comparable store sales declined 1.6% in the third quarter ended Oct. 27. Kmart's comparable store sales declined 4.8%, and Sears Canada's comparable store sales declined 5.7%. Revenues decreased $548 million to $8.9 billion for the quarter. 

CEO Lou D'Ambrosio pointed to improved EBITDA performance, which came from "some of our most important categories like Appliances, Apparel, and Home Services as we introduced new offers, honed pricing, effectively managed costs and implemented better inventory management." He continued: "We did experience shortfalls, however, in categories like Grocery and Household and Consumer Electronics, and are taking actions to improve that performance."

Amid the declines, Sears promoted the idea of its Shop Your Way customer membership program, which generates more than half of the Sears domestic and Kmart revenues.

"We are rapidly moving to a member based business model," D'Ambrosio said. "Our investments are focused on our members and their experience -- at the store, online, and mobile -- which is why we are investing in Integrated Retail and our Shop Your Way membership program."