Kimco Realty expects to get better lease prices for its 14 Sears locations
Mall real estate investment trust Kimco Realty Corp. said Monday it expects to benefit from the bankruptcy filing by Sears Holdings Corp. . The company said its exposure to Sears is limited to 14 leases, eleven of which are for Kmart stores, equal to about 1.9% of its total gross leasable area. “Today’s announcement may afford us the long-awaited opportunity to recapture boxes with significant mark-to-market potential in our core markets, and sparks several new redevelopment opportunities within our portfolio,” Kimco Chief Executive Conor Flynn said in a statement. Sears and Kmart pay among the lowest rents of any tenant in Kimco’s portfolio, he said, at an average base rent of $5.25 per square foot, compared with the portfolio average of $15.95. The 14 locations have good demographics, with a population of 129,000 within a three-mile radius and average household income of $88,000. Kimco shares were not yet active premarket, but have fallen 18.4% in 2018, while the S&P 500 has gained 3.5%.