Retailer Sears Holdings Corp , which is controlled by billionaire investor Eddie Lampert, reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss on Thursday as weak sales and bigger discounts ate into margins.

The company blamed the lackluster sales numbers on weak demand for consumer electronics at both its Sears department stores and Kmart discount chains.

Sales at Sears Holdings have fallen every year since 2005, when Lampert formed the company by merging Kmart and Sears.

In the second quarter, sales fell 1.2 percent to $10.3 billion, while analysts expected $10.5 billion.

Sales at U.S. stores open at least a year fell 0.7 percent, with those at the namesake department stores down 1.2 percent and Kmart staying flat.

The company's net loss widened to $146 million, or $1.37 a share, from $39 million, or 35 cents a share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the loss was $1.13 a share. Analysts on average were expecting a loss of 64 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

(Reporting by Dhanya Skariachan; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)