Citi Jams the Short Sellers

起初，花旗集团(Citigroup Inc.)的股东因公司将价值275亿美元的优先证券置换成普通股的要约而焦躁不安。如今，卖空者又成了热锅上的蚂蚁。借助2月份转换要约的慷慨条款，持有优先证券的投资者可以卖空普通股，以锁定潜在利润。这引来了大量的套利者，导致股价出现暴跌。但自3月5日以来，花旗的股价上涨了两倍。甚至随着卖空者现在愿意支付高价筹借股票，供应已经几乎枯竭。结果是：银行业管理人士的一系列乐观评论让进一步加剧了轧空走势。一些套利者对去年大众汽车(Volkswagen)的飙升记忆犹新，他们担心经纪商会迫使他们返还所借的股票，因此纷纷选择结清头寸。这可能会给新投资者带来甜头。上周五，花旗一股8.125%的AA Series优先证券可以以12美元买到，但可以固定交换7.3股普通股，价格为13美元。如今，这种优先证券的价格为13美元，但7.3股普通股的价值已达22美元。这样的差值显示出如果花旗坚持其计划，几周时间的绝对回报率就有70%左右。风险包括：如果政府决定持有更大的股份，则要约的条款可能做出改变。少数套利者仍没有离场。一家大型一级经纪商周二说，一个客户以相当于120%的年利率借了500万股花旗股票卖空。按照这样的利率，花旗的股东可能会认为借出他们手中的股票的确不是一个坏主意。John Jannarone相关阅读花旗提名四位新董事  披露潘伟迪薪酬 2009-03-17潘伟迪的宽心话打败股市空头 2009-03-11美国政府考虑进一步救助花旗 2009-03-10花旗股票一度跌破1美元 2009-03-06 本文涉及股票或公司document.write (truthmeter('2009年03月19日16:03', 'C'));花旗集团英文名称：Citigroup Inc.总部地点：美国上市地点：纽约证交所股票代码：C


First, shareholders were burned by Citigroup Inc.'s offer to swap $27.5 billion of preferred securities for common stock.Now, it is short sellers in the hot seat.Thanks to sweet conversion terms in the February offer, investors holding the preferreds could short the common stock to lock in a likely profit. That lured in a flood of arbitragers and pummeled the shares.But Citi's stock has tripled since March 5. Even with short sellers now willing to pay through the nose to borrow stock, the supply has virtually dried up. The result: a short squeeze exacerbated by a series of bullish comments from banking executives.Some arbitragers, with memories of last year's Volkswagen pileup and fears that brokers might force them to return borrowed stock, have rushed to close positions.That has made the trade appear juicier for new investors. Last Friday, one Citi 8.125% Series AA preferred security could be bought for $12, but was exchangeable for a fixed 7.3 shares of common stock valued at $13. Now, the preferreds are valued at $13, but 7.3 shares of common are $22.The spread implies an absolute return of about 70% in a matter of weeks if Citigroup  sticks to its plan. Risks include a change in the terms if, say, the government decides to take a larger equity stake.A few arbitragers still are playing. A large prime broker said Tuesday that a client borrowed five million Citi shares at an annualized interest rate of 120% to go short.At those rates, Citi shareholders might decide lending out their stock isn't such a bad idea after all.John Jannarone