By Angela Chen 

Sears Holdings Corp. said Thursday that it has formed a joint venture with mall owner Macerich Co. in the latest such partnership between the struggling retailer and a mall operator.

Shares of Sears are down 0.3% while shares of Macerich are down 1%.

Sears, which has also announced a similar deal with Simon Property Group Inc. and General Growth Properties Inc., said it has contributed nine properties to the venture. Sears will lease back the properties, which are located at Macerich malls, from the joint venture. Macerich, meanwhile, has contributed $150 million in cash to the venture and will have a 50% interest.

General Growth Properties paid $165 million while Simon paid $114 million.

Sears and Simon signed a similar agreement earlier this month after Simon's $16.8 billion offer to buy Macerich was rejected.

Sears' initial rent under the master lease will be about $14.8 million.

Sears Chief Executive Edward Lampert said that the joint-venture agreements demonstrate the value of Sears' real-estate portfolio. The nine properties are located in areas across the U.S. such as Washington Square, Los Cerritos Center, Chandler Fashion Center and South Plains Mall.

The move comes as Sears looks to raise more than $2.5 billion by spinning off 254 of its best properties into a separate real-estate investment trust called Seritage Growth Properties.

Shares of Sears have been up about 19% this year through Wednesday's close.

Write to Angela Chen at angela.chen@dowjones.com

Access Investor Kit for Macerich Co.

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US5543821012

Access Investor Kit for Sears Holdings Corp.

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US8123501061

Access Investor Kit for Simon Property Group, Inc.

Visit http://www.companyspotlight.com/partner?cp_code=P479&isin=US8288061091

Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires

GGP Inc. (NYSE:GGP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Feb 2024 to Mar 2024 Click Here for more GGP Inc. Charts.
GGP Inc. (NYSE:GGP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2023 to Mar 2024 Click Here for more GGP Inc. Charts.