CORRECT: Lampert Adjusts Shares In Sears Holding Corp.

In the first quarter, hedge fund billionaire Edward Lampert took direct ownership of about 4 million shares of Sears Holding Corp. (SHLD), of which he is chairman, and transferred ownership of about 638,000 shares to limited partners of his legacy partnerships, according to regulatory filings.

After the transfers, Lampert-affiliated RBS Partners reported holding 61.4 million Sears shares as of the end of the first quarter, down from 66.1 million shares at the end of 2009.

Lampert created the new Sears company in 2005 by joining Sears and Kmart.

Lampert also took direct ownership of about 900,000 shares of another big holding: AutoZone Inc. (AZO). After the transaction, RBS Partners owned 19.3 million shares at the period's end, compared with 20.2 million in December.

The moves follow a period when Lampert built up substantial bets on the financial sector, some of which were then reversed. Notably, the filing shows Lampert had no stake in Bank of America Corp. (BAC) as of March 31, after building up about 454,000 shares in the fall. He also cut holdings in Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) by about half a million to 9.1 million, lowered his Genworth Financial Inc. (GNW) exposure to 8.1 million from 8.8 million and reduced Sallie Mae (SLM) holdings by nearly two-thirds.

Several of these stocks notched substantial gains over the last several months, including Sears. Sears opened 2010 just under $85 and closed the first quarter on March 31 at $108.43. As recently as the fall, it traded in the mid-$60s.

Many investors, including Lampert, who manage more than $100 million are required to disclose holdings of most type of securities within 45 days of the end of a quarter. The filings give the public a relatively fresh look inside the portfolios of well-known investors.

-By Brendan Conway, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]