BofA: More Writedowns, 'Disappointing' Q4 Earnings

Bank of America (BAC) fell 2.7% Wednesday following a warning by CEO Ken Lewis in prepared remarks for a Goldman Sachs industry conference that writedowns of some debt securities will be more than the previously anticipated amount of $3B. Lewis said Q4 results, although they are expected to be profitable, will be "quite disappointing." Also, the exact value of the writedowns are "unknowable" and won't be available until the close of Q4. Bank of America filed a Form 8-K with the SEC disclosing the prepared remarks of Mr. Lewis. Bank of America lost 4.3% to $44.65 on Tuesday, falling with the broader market in reaction to the Fed's 0.25% rate cut.

Sources: Associated Press, Bloomberg, MarketWatch
Additional Reading: BofA's Goldman Sachs presentation (.pdf) • Bank of America Q3 2007 Earnings Call Transcript

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Comments

[WAKEUP]

Uh - Oh! Lewis is ordinarily an incurable optimist. If he is even hinting at "quite disappointing" and "unknowable" results, it's like referring to Hurricane Katrina as a "fairly big storm."