Willing To Wager

Meredith Whitney says she will bet you a lot of money that banks will come back for more capital.I think they'll probably cut their dividends again,Ms.Whitney conjectured.Citigroup's share price will go down to the single digits.Stock prices are still way too high.With government support,however,Citigroup could find a mate,Ms.Whitney feels.

Cold Water For Us

Noted analyst Meredith Whitney believes unemployment will reach double digits.Bank revenue will be down by up to seven percent.There will be a protracted period of negative operating leverage.We're going back to a 2001-2002 revenue environment.Estimates for the big banks are coming down.We're in for a rude awakening,resulting in a slow grind-down for these stocks,Ms.Whitney warned.

With Clear Eyes:Medium Term Outlook

Two leading business analysts,Meredith Whitney and Dan Niles,have been giving their medium term outlooks.Ms.Whitney specializes in financial services,while Mr.Niles covers technology.Meredith Whitney,Director of Equity Research at Oppenheimer,says that financials and the economy are so far off the tracks right now,it's hard to see how President-elect Obama could help.If banks modify loans,they will make less,not put capital back into the system.The securitization market isn't coming back.You're gonna actually see mortgage contraction.You're gonna see credit taken away from consumers by a large degree.We've never seen that before,Ms.Whitney observed.