Countrywide Sale to Lehman 'Unlikely'

An analyst that closely covers Countrywide Financial Corp. says in a new report that it is "highly unlikely" that Lehman Brothers will buy the Calabasas, Calif.-based company.In a research note, Sandler O'Neill analyst Mike McMahon says that, "Unless CFC's management has undergone a dramatic change in thinking," a sale to Lehman is not in the works. Countrywide, the nation's largest mortgage banker, was the subject of takeover rumors on Tuesday, sending its stock up about 1% in a down market. (The takeover talk was sparked by heavy buying in call options.) Over the years Countrywide has sporadically been the subject of takeover rumors. The suitors have usually been large depositories. A few years back, Countrywide obtained a bank charter and now boasts $34 billion in federally insured deposits.