Federated Department Stores, Inc. said Thursday that it has signed an agreement to sell its New York-based Lord & Taylor division to NRDC Equity Partners, LLC for $1.195 billion in cash.

NRDC Equity Partners, based in Purchase, N.Y., is a partnership between principals of Apollo Real Estate Advisors, L.P. and principals of National Realty & Development Corp.

Federated’s Board of Directors approved the sale, according to a statement from the company. The sale is expected to close in the third quarter of 2006, pending regulatory approvals.

The sale includes 48 Lord & Taylor stores in New Jersey, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia, as well as a distribution center in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Federated will continue to operate all Lord & Taylor stores and facilities until NRDC assumes ownership.

“This agreement concludes a successful process to divest Lord & Taylor,” said Terry J. Lundgren, Federated’s chairman, president and chief executive officer. “While Lord & Taylor does not fit with Federated’s strategic focus on building the nationwide Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s brands, it is a well-known niche specialty retailer with a great name, many outstanding locations and an experienced management team.”

Federated, with corporate offices in Cincinnati and New York, is one of the nation’s premier retailers, with fiscal 2006 sales expected to be more than $27 billion. Federated operates more than 850 department stores in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico under the names of Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, Famous-Barr, Filene’s, Foley’s, Hecht’s, Kaufmann’s, L.S. Ayres, Marshall Field’s, Meier & Frank, Robinsons-May, Strawbridge’s, The Jones Store. The company also operates macys.com and Bloomingdale’s By Mail.

JCK