K-Mart Buys Sears

[Reefland]

What a real kick in the butt here. K-Mart, who filed for Banruptcy a year or so ago who totally lost all market value when it's stock plummeted to pennies registers to do business under a slightly different name, becomes active on the market under a slightly different symbol and now spends $11 billion to buy Sears.

To me, this isn't any different than Enron...

[Poseidon]

Ya, Only in America... Everywhere else they call it STEALING!!! Peoples jobs, homes, retirement, Health care... All gone because someone wanted to close a few stores and re-vamp the company.... Now they have 11 BILLION in assets to buy one of America's OLDEST retailers??? I hope they don't SCREW up Sears, I have a LOT of Craftsman hand tools!!!!

[Reefland]

Said they wanted to take Sears out of the shopping malls and make them more accessible; I sure hope they don't think this is going to put them close to Wal-Mart in market share.

[Ninong]

What a real kick in the butt here. K-Mart, who filed for Banruptcy a year or so ago who totally lost all market value when it's stock plummeted to pennies registers to do business under a slightly different name, becomes active on the market under a slightly different symbol and now spends $11 billion to buy Sears.

To me, this isn't any different than Enron...

What are you talking about? What slightly different name? What slightly different symbol are you talking about? K-Mart (KMRT) filed BK. They emerged from BK last year. Same company, same symbol.

This merger was an inside job all the way. Just look at Rbs Partners. They own 46.7% of K-Mart: http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor...sp?Symbol=KMRT

They are also the largest shareholder in Sears!

K-Mart stock has ranged from $20 to $120 during the past 52 weeks even while they have been closing stores right and left and their market share has steadly declined. They can't compete with Wal-Mart and Target. It's hopeless and they know it. The reason their stock has risen is because of the value of their real estate!!! They are basically a real estate company and all of their cash flow has come from selling off stores that they closed.

Sears is another lost cause. They can't compete with J. C. Penney. I don't know if they're serious about trying to operate the surviving stores or not, maybe they are, maybe not. But the value of their real estate, both Sears and K-Mart, is what's driving the stock price. They claim that they will save $500 million per year after the third year but that's assuming everything goes their way. In any case, their liquidation value is quite high because of the value of the real estate. I think real estate is carried at cost but don't quote me on that if I'm wrong.

It was nice that K-Mart gave the Sears CEO an instant 50% raise in his base pay plus an easy way to make a $2.25 million bonus. How much you want to bet that one of the Rbs partners sits on both boards and arranged the whole thing? With 47% of K-Mart they can do whatever they want and with 15% of Sears they are the dominant voice on that board, too: http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor...p.asp?Symbol=s

[Ninong]

From the Wall Street Journal, 11/19/04:

Kmart Holdings Corp. (KMRT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) is buying Sears, Roebuck and Co. (S.N: Quote, Profile, Research) in a deal valued at $11.5 billion that will create the No. 3 U.S. retailer. The transaction was engineered by investor Edward Lampert, whose hedge fund will hold around 40 percent of the combined company. Shares of retailers surged on expectations for more takeovers.

[Reefland]

I thought that they filed under a new symbol, for some reason I had it in my head that they were running under (K) and that the stocks fell to a few pennies at which point they re-filed under a different name when they emerged???

[Ninong]

I thought that they filed under a new symbol, for some reason I had it in my head that they were running under (K) and that the stocks fell to a few pennies at which point they re-filed under a different name when they emerged???

K is for Kellog and has been for over 100 years. K-Mart has always been KMRT and it trades on the NASDAQ. K (Kellog) is on the NYSE.

KMRT http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor...sp?Symbol=KMRT

K http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor...e.asp?Symbol=K

[orion25]

Well, I work for Target and we see the merger as one bankrupt company buying another. It is the same thing as killing 2 birds with one stone. I believe KMart is getting sears so it can sell off the real estate it has. Look at how KM has made it's money in the most recent months.

[Poseidon]

So should I start selling my tools on E-bay???

[MEC]

Well, I work for Target and we see the merger as one bankrupt company buying another. It is the same thing as killing 2 birds with one stone. I believe KMart is getting sears so it can sell off the real estate it has. Look at how KM has made it's money in the most recent months.

Lately I have thought of both stors as going down hill. Used to be real good places to shop in the 70's but lately.......


BTW Why sweat the petty things, when you can pet the sweaty things ....Mike

[orion25]

Lately I have thought of both stors as going down hill. Used to be real good places to shop in the 70's but lately.......


Mike

My point exactly

[Ninong]

What a real kick in the butt here. K-Mart, who filed for Banruptcy a year or so ago who totally lost all market value when it's stock plummeted to pennies registers to do business under a slightly different name, becomes active on the market under a slightly different symbol and now spends $11 billion to buy Sears.

To me, this isn't any different than Enron...

What about Donald Trump? He just BK'd Trump Casinos AGAIN!!! What a con artist!

[schrocat]

Trump.

The living personification of "This way to the egress" ...

What about Donald Trump? He just BK'd Trump Casinos AGAIN!!! What a con artist!