You're In Trouble When They Talk About The Value Of Your HQ

You know you're in trouble when the press start to speculate on exactly how much your flagship building is worth. And The Financial Times did just that earlier this week on the subject of Lehman Brothers' 38-storey Times Square headquarters.

According to the newspaper, the 575-foot skyscraper building could be worth as much as $1.3bn, almost twice the amount Lehman paid for it in 2001. It's astonishing to think that the value of the building and the probable worth of asset management arm Neuberger Berman (said to be valued at anything up to $13bn) are together worth more than Lehman's market capitalization of just over $9bn.

And on the subject of Neuberger, the smart money says that three private equity firms, Bain Capital, Hellman & Friedman and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, are still in with a shot at acquiring some form of stake in the unit.

And Reuters reports that Morgan Stanley came out Wednesday saying that it estimates that Lehman is likely to post a third-quarter loss, after writedowns of up to $3.5bn.

Finally, Bloomberg has also reported that the firm is considering seeking out outside investors to fund a new company which will take on $40bn of Lehman's commercial and real estate assets. If this matter is pursued (and Lehman may well decide on an outright sale of these assets instead), the firm is expected to take an equity stake in this new venture.

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