Sears Cites ‘Substantial Doubt’ Over Its Future

Sears Holdings has posted annual losses for seven consecutive years.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL—Shares of Sears Holdings (SHLD) slumped Wednesday following the beleaguered retailer’s after-hours release of its annual report, which indicated “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue as a going concern. The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg Business reported that Sears shares were off by as much as 15% as of mid-morning Wednesday, after gaining more than 60% since early February.

“We cannot predict, with certainty, the outcome of our actions to generate liquidity, including the availability of additional debt financing, or whether such actions would generate the expected liquidity as currently planned,” according to the SHLD annual report. The retailer, which last month posted its seventh consecutive annual loss—$2.22 billion for the year that ended Jan. 28—says that if operating losses continue, “we may not be able to access additional funds under our amended Domestic Credit Agreement.”