Edward Lampert

ESL Investments

Last Update: 2013-05-15

Number of Stocks: 8
Number of New Stocks: 0

Total Value: $4,025 Mil
Q/Q Turnover: 8%

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Edward Lampert Watch

Visionary Retail Investor Lampert Sells Three
by Sally Jones - May 22, 2013
Edward Lampert, founder of ESL Investments and top executive for Sears Holdings Corporation (SHLD), sold out holdings in three companies as of March 31, 2013. With a deep understanding of the everyday consumer, Lampert has made a fortune as a visionary retail investor. His portfolio is weighted with 97.6% in the consumer cyclical sector. Here’s a look at the retail-based companies Guru Lampert is letting go in his first quarter 2013 sell outs:

Sold Out: AutoZone Inc. (AZO) – Specialty Retail Continue Reading »
Savant Edward Lampert, Top Six Holdings - Great Gains Despite One Bad Apple
by Sally Jones - May 07, 2013
Here’s a look at the portfolio of investing Guru Edward Lampert, Number 68 on the Forbes list of 400 Richest Americans. Lampert wears multiple crowns as the founder of his own hedge fund ESL Investments and as the Chairman and CEO of Sears Holdings. Lampert’s reputation as a savant investor and creative mastermind has grown to near-mythic proportion. With super-gains like his top positions reveal, Lampert can afford one bad apple in the “Orchard.” Lampert is the matchmaker behind the Sears and Kmart union, which ultimately produced two spin-offs Sears Hometown & Outlet Stores, and the problem child, Orchard Supply Hardware. The ESL Investments portfolio is heavily weighted with consumer cyclical, reflecting that Guru Lampert reads the pulse of the people, how we live, what we drive, and what we wear.

Here are Edward Lampert’s top six holdings: Continue Reading »
Countdown for Orchard – Edward Lampert Cuts OSH, Sears Backstory
by Sally Jones - Apr 26, 2013
According to the GuruFocus 52-week low screener, Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) is at a 52-week low, and 93.3% off its high. As Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) faces possible default on a loan payment, top stakeholder Guru Edward Lampert, CEO of Sears Holding Corporation and founder of ESL Investments, reduced his Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) position again by 16.25%, with remaining shares at 839,867, as of April 24, 2013. He traded at an average price of $1.55. The current price is $1.45, with a change from average down 6%. Seeking an out-of-court restructuring, Orchard Supply’s lawyers and advisers must strike a deal with lenders by May 1.

Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) operates neighborhood hardware and garden stores featuring products for home improvement, repair and the yard. Founded as a farmers’ cooperative in San Jose in 1931, the company has 89 stores in California. Continue Reading »
Edward Lampert Prunes Orchard – 52-Week Low, OSH 92.3% Off
by Sally Jones - Apr 13, 2013
The GuruFocus 52-week low screener reveals that Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH), the Sears home and garden improvement spin-off, is way off by 92.3%. OSH shares are priced at $2.14, from the high of $27.93. The 52-week low value screen also shows that Sears CEO Edward Lampert is one of three Gurus still holding on.

As of April 11, 2013, Sears CEO Edward Lampert, also founder of ESL Investments, reduced his Orchard Supply Hardware position again by 2.12%, with remaining shares at 1,005,329. He last pruned his Orchard position by 0.31% on April 1, 2013, and had trimmed multiple times prior in this quarter. Since first quarter in 2012, between shares bought and sold, Lampert’s average cost per share was $27, for a 92% loss. Continue Reading »
Eddie Lampert Hacks OSH - Is Sears Spinoff Spinning Out?
by Sally Jones - Mar 28, 2013
Almost a year ago, Sears CEO Edward Lampert owned 2,122,707 OSH shares — today he owns about half of that. As of March 25, 2013, Lampert reduced his position in Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH), a Sears spinoff, for the third time since last summer. For quarter ending June 30, 2012, the 10% owner Lampert had reduced his position by 22.7%, then again for quarter ending Dec. 31, 2012, Lampert reduced by 29.51%. His most current trade, reducing by 8.7%, leaves him with current shares of 1,080,204. The current price of OSH shares is $3.97, and according to GuruFocus analysis, is off 47% year to date.

What is going on with Orchard and its uber investor Guru Lampert, the mastermind of the Sears makeover? Orchard Supply Hardware is a David and Goliath story, but this time, there are many giants to battle. Orchard competes with home improvement and hardware heavies who have already figured out supply chain, pricing strategy and customer options. Orchard’s competitors include The Home Depot, Ace Hardware, Costco, Wal-Mart, Target, TrueValue and Lowe’s for house paint, garden tools, and other do-it-yourself products. Compare The Home Depot fiscal 2012 revenue of $70 billion to Orchard’s fiscal 2011 revenue of $660 million. Continue Reading »
Edward Lampert and Sears, Investing in Wow
by Sally Jones - Mar 07, 2013
As Sears Holding Corporation (SHLD) announced a loss of $489 million with sales continuing a six-year decline, the new Sears CEO Edward Lampert, also manager of ESL Investments, made two adds of SHLD, 2.91% and 0.79%, at the average price of $44.17 the first week of March 2013. Lampert now owns 43,845,246 SHLD shares. The stock price has changed by 0%.

Continue Reading »
Vornado Begins to Exit J.C. Penney and Lampert Scoops Up More Sears
by earningsyield - Mar 05, 2013
U.S. indexes continue their march upwards and are now in arms reach of making all-time highs. Higher markets in Europe are certainly helping push U.S. markets higher as the media’s attention is not focused on the continents longer-term issues such as excessive debt. What we sometimes forget is that throughout all the pain, the U.S. economy continues to be one of the performing economy around the world. Let’s see what our government does as we start to deal with the effects of the sequester.

J.C. Penney (JCP) continues to make headlines as the Wall Street Journal is reporting Deutsche Bank is “shopping” around a 10 million share sell order owned by Vornado Realty Trust (VNO). This adds another twist in J.C. Penney’s turnaround as it was Vornado’s Steve Roth and Pershing Square’s Bill Ackman idea to hire current CEO Ron Johnson. The sale would cut Vornado’s stake in the struggling retailer by 40% and comes less than a week after the century old retailer reported disappointing earnings amidst declining sales. The journal states that Vornado built its position at an average price of $25.75 and had booked $300 million in losses as J.C. Penney’s (JCP) shares continued to decline. The other major holders include: Continue Reading »
Edward Lampert's Sears Holdings Annual Letter 2013
by Holly LaFon - Feb 28, 2013
Chairman's Letter February 28, 2013

To Our Shareholders, Associates and Members: Continue Reading »
Edward Lampert Reports Owning 2 New Stocks
by Holly LaFon - Feb 15, 2013
Edward Lampert has a highly successful hedge fund, ESL Investments, and also often takes a hands-on role at the companies he invests in, particularly Sears Holdings (SHLD). He is a bottom-up stock picker focused on company fundamentals. Lampert’s portfolio is valued at $3.84 billion, has 11 stocks and is 94.6% weighted in the consumer cyclical sector. In the fourth quarter, he reported to holding two new stocks: Safeway Inc. (SWY) and Sears Hometown & Outlet Stores Inc. (SHOS).

Sears Hometown & Outlet Stores Inc. (SHOS) Continue Reading »
Eddie Lampert’s Low P/E Retail Stocks
by Dianne Tordillo - Jan 14, 2013
Like Warren Buffett, founder of hedge fund ESL Investments, Edward Lampert, goes for easily understandable businesses that have solid cash flows. But unlike Buffett, Lampert spends less time focusing on management, given that he would rather implement changes in the companies himself, by working with, or shaking up management teams (from Lampert’s GuruFolio report).

This approach is especially prevalent in several of his investments, which are majority retail. He specializes in acquiring stakes in beaten-down retailers, particularly one widely popular one, Sears Holdings (SHLD), a company where he has recently secured a CEO position. Continue Reading »
Eddie Lampert Buys More Sears Holdings Shares After Taking Control as CEO
by Holly LaFon - Jan 14, 2013
Just days after taking over the CEO role at Sears Holdings (SHLD), Eddie Lampert has furthered his gradual dominance of the company by increasing his shareholding. GuruFocus Real Time Picks reports that Lampert increased his Sears stake by 0.79% at the average price of $41.30 per share on Jan. 9, 2013.

The purchased raised his ownership in the company to 56.5% of shares outstanding, and elevated his share count to 42,606,190. News of the event sent shares up 7.4% in midday trading. Continue Reading »
Businessweek - How Will Eddie Lampert Do with Sears?
by Holly LaFon - Jan 10, 2013
The future of Sears Holdings (SHLD) boils down not to its same-store sales, online strategy, or any of retail’s countless other metrics, but this one question: Is Eddie Lampert a budding Warren Buffett or a Willy Loman?

That’s long been a question on Wall Street, never more so than this week after Lampert, 50, the chairman of the company and founder and head of hedge fund ESL Investments, inserted himself as Sears’s fifth chief executive officer in seven years. You cannot help but wonder if Lampert knows what he wants to do with the retailer/investment vehicle, which is the product of his 2005 smashing together of Kmart and Sears Roebuck. Continue Reading »
Is Sears the Next Berkshire Hathaway?
by Charles Sizemore - Jan 10, 2013
A well-respected value investor buys an old American company in decline, promising to restore its fortunes. Alas, the recovery never comes. The economics of the industry have changed, and the company cannot compete with younger, nimbler rivals. The company ceases operations, but the value investor holds onto the shell to use as an investment vehicle. Continue Reading »
Edward Lampert Claims CEO Title of Sears Holdings Corp.
by Dianne Tordillo - Jan 08, 2013
Long-time stakeholder of specialty retailer Sears Holdings Corp. (SHLD), Edward Lampert of ESL Investments, has stepped in to succeed Louis D’Ambrosio’s position as CEO, after D’Ambrosio announced yesterday that he is stepping down due to family health matters.

Lampert will proceed to serve as Sears Holdings' board of directors chairman, in addition to his new CEO title, which is set to take into effect Feb. 2. D’Ambrosio will remain on the board until the company’s next Annual Meeting of Stockholders, to be held May 2013. Continue Reading »
Revenues Fall at Sears Holdings in Third Quarter Results
by Holly LaFon - Nov 15, 2012
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., Nov. 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Sears Holdings Corporation ("Holdings," "we," "us," "our" or the "Company") (SHLD) today reported its third quarter 2012 results. In summary, we reported:
- Adjusted EBITDA increased $34 million for the quarter to a loss of $156 million in 2012 versus a loss of $190 million in 2011. Domestic Adjusted EBITDA increased $18 million (a loss of $164 million in 2012 versus a loss of $182 million in 2011). Sears Canada's Adjusted EBITDA improved $16 million ($8 million in 2012 versus a loss of $8 million in 2011);
- Net loss from continuing operations attributable to Holdings' shareholders for the third quarter of $498 million ($4.70 loss per diluted share) and $410 million ($3.85 loss per diluted share), in 2012 and 2011, respectively. The third quarter included an effective tax rate of 2.3% in 2012 versus a benefit rate of 18.0% in 2011;
- Adjusted loss per diluted share from continuing operations for the third quarter of $1.99 in 2012 and $2.55 in 2011;
- For the quarter, selling and administrative expenses declined $139 million;
- Sears Domestic's comparable store sales declined 1.6% in the third quarter of 2012, Kmart's comparable store sales declined 4.8%, and Sears Canada's comparable store sales declined 5.7%;
- Continued discipline of our investment in inventory with domestic inventory declining $1.4 billion from the prior year balance ($972 million excluding the inventory related to the Sears Hometown and Outlet businesses);
- Completed the separation of Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores, Inc. on October 11, 2012 which raised $446.5 million in gross proceeds; and
- Partial spin-off to our shareholders of 45% of the outstanding common shares of Sears Canada closed on November 13, 2012.
Lou D'Ambrosio, Sears Holdings' Chief Executive Officer and President, said, "For the 3rd quarter and year-to-date, we improved EBITDA, accelerated our strategic actions and generated significant cash by delivering on the actions we outlined at our Annual meeting. Our EBITDA improvement in the quarter 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. We did experience shortfalls, however, in categories like Grocery and Household and Consumer Electronics, and are taking actions to improve that performance.

We will continue to take the actions necessary to create value and retain the flexibility to invest in the strategic priorities of our company. We are rapidly moving to a member based business model. 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. Over half of our revenues at Sears Domestic and Kmart now come from SHOP YOUR WAY membership. Continue Reading »
Hedge Fund Billionaire Eddie Lampert Buys Netflix, Big Lots, Sells Gap, Autozone, Capital One Financial
by GuruFocus - Nov 14, 2012
Billionaire financier Eddie Lampert has had a lot of success with investing in retailers. His positions in Autozone, AutoNation gained multi-baggers. Although he seems to be struggling with his largest retailer investment, Sears (SHLD), he still made a lot of money with the position. Now Lampert buys Netflix, and added into another retailer Big Lots, Inc. He sells Gap, Inc., Autozone Inc, Capital One Financial Corp, Cit Group Inc, Seagate Technology Plc, Avon Products Inc etc during the 3-months ended 09/30/2012, according to the most recent filings of his investment company, ESL Investments. Lampert keeps selling AutoNation and Autozone over the past quarters. They are his long term positions and their stock prices have appreciated multiple times. Overall, Eddie sold a lot more stocks than bought during the third quarter.

As of 09/30/2012, ESL Investments owns 10 stocks with a total value of $5.6 billion. These are the details of the buys and sells. Continue Reading »
Edward Lampert Makes Reductions to AutoNation
by Holly LaFon - Nov 05, 2012
Though manager of hedge fund ESL Investments, Eddie Lampert, had been steadily chiseling down his stake in AutoNation (AN) since the first quarter of 2010, he made his first reduction of this year in a series of transactions from Oct. 31 to Nov. 2, according to GuruFocus Real Time Picks. The total amount sold was 763,507 shares, which shrank his holding size by 1.59 percent. The average selling price was about $44 per share.

Lampert’s stake in AutoNation grew to almost 80 million shares at its largest in the first quarter of 2009, when the price was around $11 per share. He began selling in the first quarter of 2010, and has reduced the holding to a total of about 47.3 million shares, or 39.19 percent of the company. Continue Reading »
Revenue Falls at Eddie Lampert's Sears Holdings in the Second Quarter
by Holly LaFon - Aug 16, 2012
HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., Aug. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Sears Holdings Corporation ("Holdings," "we," "us," "our" or the "Company") (SHLD) today reported its second quarter 2012 results. In summary, we reported:
- Adjusted EBITDA increased $95 million for the quarter to $153 million in 2012 versus $58 million in 2011. Domestic EBITDA increased $114 million ($144 million in 2012 versus $30 million in 2011). Sears Canada's EBITDA declined $19 million ($9 million in 2012 versus $28 million in 2011);
- For the quarter, margin rate increased 100 basis points and selling and administrative expenses declined;
- Net loss from continuing operations attributable to Holdings' shareholders for the second quarter of $132 million ($1.25 loss per diluted share) and $152 million ($1.42 loss per diluted share), in 2012 and 2011, respectively. The second quarter included an effective tax benefit rate of 39.3% in 2011 versus a benefit rate of 15.8% in 2012;
- Adjusted loss per diluted share from continuing operations for the second quarter of $0.86 in 2012 and $1.18 in 2011;
- Sears Domestic's comparable store sales declined 2.9% in the second quarter of 2012, Kmart's comparable store sales declined 4.7%, and Sears Canada's comparable store sales declined 7.1%;
- Continued discipline of our inventory with domestic inventory declining $512 million from the prior year balance;
- Liquidity of $3.1 billion with cash balances of $738 million and nearly $2.4 billion of capacity on domestic and Canadian revolving credit facilities, as well as Sears Hometown and Outlet Store transaction on track to raise $446.5 million of gross proceeds; and
- Partial spin-off of our interest in Sears Canada expected to close in the second half of 2012 with distribution to our shareholders.
Lou D'Ambrosio, Sears Holdings' Chief Executive Officer and President, said, "We continue to make progress against the priorities we outlined in our fourth quarter earnings release and call. In particular, we have improved our profit position, as we reduced expenses and expanded margin rate through more effective promotional design. We have also successfully lowered inventory, reduced debt from year end, and enhanced our liquidity. In addition, the Sears Hometown transaction remains on track to close in the third quarter. While we drive operational discipline, we are also investing in our customer experience, particularly through our ShopYourWay membership program and Integrated Retail. Our focus is on providing clear benefits to our members and customers, and delivering an excellent and seamless experience across the store, online, mobile and in the home." Continue Reading »
Eddie Lampert Finds One Attractive Stock in Second Quarter - Avon
by Holly LaFon - Aug 15, 2012
Renowned investor Eddie Lampert, founder of hedge fund ESL Investments, found only one new stock for his extremely concentrated portfolio of 12 stocks: Avon Products Inc. (AVP). He bought 145,922 shares at an average price of $19.

Avon Products Inc. is one of the world's manufacturers and marketers of beauty and related products, which include cosmetics, fragrance and toiletries; beauty plus which consists of jewelry and accessories and apparel; and non-core which consists of gift and decorative and home entertainment products. Continue Reading »
Eddie Lampert's Sears Ponders Spin-Offs
by Holly LaFon - Aug 15, 2012
From Barron's:

In recent years Sears Holdings (SHLD) has been among the more controversial companies on Wall Street. Yet there is little disagreement between the stock's backers and detractors about the quality of the core Sears and Kmart retail operations: All think it stinks. Both chains are considered also-rans, with too many tired stores in disadvantaged locations, subject to a slow bleed in sales. Continue Reading »