No WaMu Sale Yet

Don't expect Washington Mutual's board of directors to push for a sale of the company, at least not yet, according to a new research report released recently by Smith Barney, a subsidiary of Citigroup.In the report Smith Barney analyst Matt Vetto said that investors may question "the degree to which" the thrift's board will tolerate the company's recent "missteps," but notes that the very same board, "signed off on both management's cost cutting and expansion plans and it would seem that they will be allowed to run their course at least through the rest of the year." The Seattle-based WaMu, the nation's third largest residential servicer (formerly first) has been mentioned as a takeover candidate for several months now. Potential buyers mentioned include HSBC, and Citigroup, which owns Smith Barney. WaMu, as a policy, does not comment on sale rumors.