CHICAGO — Battered retailer Sears Holdings Corp. posted its largest quarterly loss yesterday since Sears and Kmart combined, providing results far below Wall Street forecasts and issuing a dour sales forecast for the remainder of the year.

The company said it lost $56 million, or 43 cents per share, in its first quarter as it fought for shoppers and cut prices to clear merchandise from store floors.

That's a big reversal from the retailer's year-ago profit of $223 million, or $1.45 per share.

"It was a pretty ugly quarter," said Morningstar analyst Kim Picciola. "All in all, not only are they facing the challenges from the uncertain macro environment, but they're still struggling internally from some of their own issues. And I think that shows in the results."

On an adjusted basis, Sears reported a loss of 53 cents per share for the three months ending May 5, compared with profits of $1.15 per share in the same period last year.

Shares fell $3.22, or 3.6 percent, to $86.14 yesterday.

Lead by financier Edward Lampert, who acquired Kmart in 2003 and Sears, Roebuck and Co. in 2005, Sears is in the midst of a restructuring aimed at reconnecting with shoppers and reinvigorating atrophied same-store sales, which have fallen for the past nine consecutive quarters.

It said that customers were forced to spend more money to cover the soaring costs of gas and food. That knocked down sales nearly 6 percent to $11.1 billion, it said.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expected profit of 15 cents per share on sales of $11.41 billion.

Executives said Sears' same-store sales slumped 9.8 percent in the U.S., while Kmart saw its comparable store sales shrink 7.1 percent.

Total domestic comparable store sales, an important retail industry metric of sales in stores open at least one year, declined 8.6 percent.