Retail Stock Surprise: Sears Tops Poll

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Department stores, on the whole, rallied this week, but surprisingly Sears(SHLD) ranked as the winner in sector among TheStreet readers.

Sears was favored as the hottest stock with 31.5% of the total vote, beating out Kohl's(KSS), which has -- unlike Sears -- been a consistent winner in the sector.

Jim Cramer said in his State of the Market report on Wednesday that Sears is garnering too much attention.

Still, investors sent shares of the company up 3% last week to close at $64.18.

Retail: Winners and Losers

Kohl's came in a close second with 27.5% of the vote. Earlier in the month, the company reported a 0.2% jump in August same-store sales, surpassing analysts' expectations of a 1.7% decline. Kohl's has won over shoppers with its private-label and exclusive merchandise at wallet-friendly prices.

Shares of the company grew 2.5% to close at $55.18 on Friday.

J.C. Penney(JCP) came in third in the survey at 17.8%.

On Friday, that company launched "she said," a contemporary career sportswear brand catering to the female professional.

Experts predicted the company would perform better in August from the back-to-school sales increase, but it fell short of expectations, with same-store sales sinking 7.9%, lower than the 6.7% drop forecast.