Worry in the mortgage market was so palpable Wednesday following Bear's news that Lehman Brothers was forced to publicly refute rumors that circulated through Wall Street trading desks suggesting the bank was also preparing to announce steep losses in one of its funds tied to mortgage bonds.
Worry in the mortgage market was so palpable Wednesday following Bear's news that Lehman Brothers (nyse: LEH - news - people ) was forced to publicly refute rumors that circulated through Wall Street trading desks suggesting the bank was also preparing to announce steep losses in one of its funds tied to mortgage bonds.
The news comes as brokerage firms post mixed results, with Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) announcing Thursday that it came short Wall Street's expectations (See "Fixed Income Bowls Over Bear"), as did Morgan Stanley (nyse: MS - news - people ) on Wednesday (See "Morgan Stanley Can't Keep Up").
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs Group (nyse: GS - news - people ) and Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) got into the act.
In recent days, analysts who follow Wall Street banks have been slashing their estimates for first-quarter earnings, which for Goldman, Lehman, Morgan Stanley (nyse: MS - news - people ) and Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ), include the months of December through February.
These firms, including Merrill Lynch (nyse: MER - news - people ), Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ), Lehman Brothers (nyse: LEH - news - people ), Morgan Stanley, as well as Goldman, believe they have a stake in the future of the exchange because they support much of the business that flows through it.
The results augur similar fates for other banks that have benefited in the first six months of the year from strong trading, including Lehman Bros. (nyse: LEH - news - people ), Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) and Morgan Stanley (nyse: MS - news - people ), all of which will report in the coming days their fiscal third quarters ending in August.
He currently recommends Rydex Ursa (nasdaq: RYURX - news - people ) and the Prudent Bear (nasdaq: BEARX - news - people ) funds as good short-selling funds.
JPMorgan Chase (nyse: JPM - news - people ), which rescued Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) last month, is expected to report a 50% drop in earnings per share.
Bove speculated that the timing of Cruz's departure suggests there might be a sizeable write-off coming for the firm, reminiscent of the scenario that played out with Warren Spector's exit from Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) (See " Bear Claws Out Co-President").
Good news is also seen by David Malpass, chief economist for Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ).
Goldman Sachs Group (nyse: GS - news - people ), Morgan Stanley and Bear Stearns Cos. (nyse: BSC - news - people ) dominate the market, particularly for equity prime brokerage, but a handful of commercial banks, including Bank of America (nyse: BAC - news - people ) and Citigroup (nyse: C - news - people ), have been chomping at the bit to get bigger.
"If you're a bull or a bear, you could find enough news out there to convince you of your position, " said Jim Lauder, CEO of Global Index Advisors in Marietta, Ga.
JPMorgan Chase (nyse: JPM - news - people ) had been viewed as a possible buyer, but it is currently absorbing Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ), putting a deal for WaMu off for the moment.
Bear's shares initially jumped on news of the bail-out but crashed after the market opened on Friday.
And then there's economist Stephen Roach, the Morgan Stanley (nyse: MS - news - people ) bear every bull loves to gore.
The good news is that banks would not bear the brunt of a credit meltdown.
"This is disappointing because this news is recurring, " said Bear Stearns analyst Dana Telsey.
In bear markets, the opposite is true: good news is often ignored, while bad news leads to repeated bouts of selling.
FORBES: Chaos Theory, Financial Markets, and Global Weirding
News earlier this week that a third Bear Stearns hedge fund, laden with mortgage debt, might be faltering raised even more concerns about the company.
No bonuses this year, either, at Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ), Wall Street's fifth-biggest securities firm.
FORBES: Morgan Stanley's Mack Joins Wall Steet's Bonus Bereft
And that's exactly what happened to Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) the week of March 10.
To pay for it, he dipped into margin accounts at Goldman and Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ).
FORBES: When a hedge fund attacks a company, guess who wins twice?
Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) analyst Stephen Unger thinks the judge isn't buying IMS' free speech claim.
"To watch my sweet little boy turn into this person is too much to bear, " she was quoted in the Patriot News as saying.
Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) is liquidating two of its hedge funds that had leveraged bets in collateralized debt securities.
Wolfe, 40, who has been at Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) eight years, has bagged a dozen--and at least one each year.
But unlike Bear Stearns (nyse: BSC - news - people ) at least, Galena had virtually no leverage, so it isn't forced to sell off assets in a fire sale environment.
应用推荐