| NEW YORK -
Shares of mortgage real estate investment trusts plummeted Monday after the New York Stock Exchange halted trading of shares of American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. pending an announcement from the troubled mortgage lender.
The move spooked already jittery investors, deepening worries that the subprime mortgage market fallout is far from over.
The stock of Kansas City, Mo.-based NovaStar Financial (nyse: NFI - news - people ) Inc. fell $2.68, or 16.5 percent, to $13.56 in afternoon trading, while shares of Quadra Realty Trust (nyse: QRR - news - people ) Inc. fell 56 cents, or 5.2 percent, to $10.14.
Shares of Philadelphia-based RAIT Financial Trust (nyse: RASPRA - news - people ) plunged $1.22, or 7 percent, to $16.16 in afternoon trading, while New York-based NorthStar Realty Finance Corp.'s stock dropped 69 cents, or 6.3 percent, to $10.21.
Melville, N.Y.-based American Home Mortgage Investment (nyse: AHM - news - people ) is expected to issue an announcement during trading hours Monday, an NYSE spokesman said. Shares last traded at $10.47.
On Friday, the company said it is freezing its dividend because the deteriorating conditions in the mortgage market have forced the lender to reduce the value of its portfolio of mortgages and mortgage-backed bonds.
Analysts from Lehman Brothers (nyse: LEH - news - people ), RBC Capital Markets and JMP Securities LLC downgraded American Home Mortgage Investment.
Beginning earlier this year, many financial backers have quit funding mortgage-backed securities and have demanded some money back from lenders as home loans diminish in value.
Mounting delinquencies and foreclosures among borrowers with risky credit have forced some lenders out of business and others to tighten credit standards.
For more on REITs - see PreferredsOnline
|
