Dive Brief:

• Sears Holdings Corp. Monday said Q2 sales declined, causing shares to sink 10%, the lowest price in more than a decade.

• Q2 same-store sales fell 10.6%—down 13.9% at Sears’s U.S. stores and 6.9% at Kmart.

• The struggling retailer did manage to turn a profit, though, thanks to a series of spinoffs, notably the spinoff of its real estate assets into a Real Estate Investment Trust.

Dive Insight:

The massive shift of Sears’ formidable real estate portfolio into its own investment trust has accomplished what it was intended to do—restore some order to the retailer’s dismal balance sheet.

But with yet another poor sales showing, Wall Street wasn’t much mollified. 

The question now is whether Sears can persuade enough investors that this is just a short-term moment in its very long-term strategy. The retailer isn’t without its cheerleaders, who say that the company is doing just what it needs to do—close poorly performing stores, pivot to an omnichannel retail stance (which it’s done, admirably), and allow time for the comeback to take hold. 

If those true believing investors are still out there, they’ll get Sears shares at a bargain at the moment.