The Ito-Yokado retail group has agreed to sell its entire equity stake in Daikuma Co. to Yamada Denki Co. and Nomura Principal Finance Co., the ailing retailer announced Wednesday.

According to the announcement, large-scale home electronics retailer Yamada Denki and investor Nomura Principal Finance will purchase an 87.7 percent equity stake in Daikuma from the Ito-Yokado group.

The Ito-Yokado group owns more than 10 million shares in the discount store operator, based in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.

The deal, the value of which has not yet been announced, is part of Ito-Yokado's restructuring drive. Yamada Denki intends to use Daikuma's network to expand operations in Kanagawa.

Nomura Principal Finance, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nomura Holdings Inc., invests in domestic businesses.

Daikuma is capitalized at 4.24 billion yen and has a workforce of just over 1,000. In its business year to February 2001, the company incurred an unconsolidated pretax loss of 3.18 billion yen on sales of 114.32 billion yen.