AHM Stock Not Trading; Bankruptcy Rumored

For the second day in a row, the stock of American Home Mortgage Investment Corp., Melville, N.Y., did not trade as rumors began to circulate that the REIT is contemplating filing for bankruptcy protection.As of MortgageWire's deadline, AHM's spokeswoman could not be reached for comment. Industry executives have told MW that IndyMac Bancorp, Pasadena, Calif., has broken off talks with AHM about buying all or part of the troubled lender's retail platform. On Friday, AHM's stock closed at $10.47 but fell to just over $6 a share in after-hours trading when the nondepository revealed that it would delay a dividend payment after being hit with significant margin calls from its warehouse lenders. AHM, a real estate investment trust, is the nation's 10th-largest residential funder, according to the Quarterly Data Report. Since Friday the company has not issued any clarifying statements on its situation. It has not filed any reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission since July 2. The mortgage REIT can be found online at http://www.americanhm.com.