In July and August Vornado bought about 1.2 million shares ofSears for $34.44 each. In August and September the REIT purchased7.9 million for $39.82 per share. A Vornado spokesperson could notbe reached for comment on the deal. In their report, the companysays the shares are "recorded as marketable securities on thecompany's consolidated balance sheet and are classified asavailable for sale."

In June Vornado acquired 25 properties housing units of theSouthern California-based Stater Bros. supermarket chain for $65million. And the REIT has made investments in other retail chainsin the past.

The company owns 60 retail real estate properties in six statesand Puerto Rico totaling 13.1 million sf. Vornado also owns 20office properties in Manhattan, the 3.4 million-sf Merchandise Martin Chicago and 63 office properties in Washington DC and northernVirginia. In all Vornado has an interest in 87 million sf of realestate.