Meredith Whitney
Encyclopedia
Meredith Ann Whitney is a banking analyst and frequent contributor to CNBC
, Fox Business, and Bloomberg News
programs. Based in New York City
, Whitney manages her own advisory firm, Meredith Whitney Advisory Group LLC, where she produces company-specific equity research
on financial institutions and analyzes the sector's operating environment. She was formerly a managing director at Oppenheimer & Co..
in 1987 before doing a post-graduate year at The Lawrenceville School. She was a member of the first co-ed graduating class of The Lawrenceville School. She graduated with honors from Brown University
.
Whitney joined Oppenheimer in 1993 as a research associate covering the Oil and Gas Industry. In 1995, she joined the company's Specialty Finance Group. In 1998, she left the company, eventually becoming the head of financial institution research at Wachovia
. Whitney returned to Oppenheimer in 2004, where she covered banks and brokers. She resigned from Oppenheimer on February 19, 2009 to establish her own firm.
on October 31, 2007, to which many Wall Street
analysts, and the news media, paid attention. She has since followed this report with similar reports and predictions, which have tended to leave the companies involved with lower stock prices as the market has taken her opinion seriously. One of her claims is that goodwill
is built into a lot of companies' share price
s, and that as the market moves into dark times, this goodwill will dissipate.
On December 19, 2010, Whitney was accused of stating that between fifty and a hundred counties, cities, and towns in the United States would have "significant" municipal bond defaults starting in 2011, totaling "hundreds of billions" of dollars in losses. She predicted this during her appearance on the broadcast of the CBS program 60 Minutes
. Since the record amount of money lost in one year through municipal bond defaults is $8.2 billion, Ms. Whitney's comments about hundreds of billions in losses drew a great deal of attention, much of it critical. , "her prediction had yet to materialize."
According to Vanity Fair writer Michael Lewis, in his November 2011 article, California and Bust, "But that’s not at all what she had said: her words were being misrepresented so that her message might be more easily attacked. “She was referring to the complacency of the ratings agencies and investment advisers who say there is nothing to worry about,” said a person at 60 Minutes who reviewed the transcripts of the interview for me, to make sure I had heard what I thought I had heard. “She says there is something to worry about, and it will be apparent to everyone in the next 12 months.”
.com's "The Best Analysts: Stock Pickers" listed Whitney as the second best stock picker in the capital-market industry and the New York Post
named her one of the fifty most powerful women in New York city.
Whitney's extremely bearish view on banks landed her on the cover of the August 18, 2008, issue of Fortune Magazine. Even before the problems that befell Merrill Lynch
and Lehman Brothers
in September, she said, "It feels like I'm at the epicenter of the biggest financial crisis in history, however even a broken clock is right twice a day". In October 2008, Whitney was ranked as one of Fortune 500’s “50 Most Powerful Women in Business.” In 2008, she won CNBC's "Power Player of the Year" over Jamie Dimon
, Ben Bernanke
, and Hank Paulson.
professional wrestler and Fox News & Fox Business contributor John "Bradshaw" Layfield
on February 13, 2005, in Key West, Florida
at the Wyndham Casa Marina.
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
, Fox Business, and Bloomberg News
Bloomberg Television
Bloomberg Television is a 24-hour global network broadcasting business and financial news. It is distributed globally, reaching over 200 million homes worldwide. It is owned and operated by Bloomberg L.P...
programs. Based in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Whitney manages her own advisory firm, Meredith Whitney Advisory Group LLC, where she produces company-specific equity research
Securities research
Securities research is a discipline within the financial services industry. Securities research professionals are known most generally as "analysts," "research analysts," or "securities analysts;" all the foregoing terms are synonymous...
on financial institutions and analyzes the sector's operating environment. She was formerly a managing director at Oppenheimer & Co..
Education and career
Whitney graduated from The Madeira SchoolThe Madeira School
The Madeira School is a private, non-denominational preparatory boarding school for girls located in McLean, Virginia, United States. Originally located on 19th Street near Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C., it was founded by Lucy Madeira Wing in 1906 and moved to the Northern Virginia suburb of...
in 1987 before doing a post-graduate year at The Lawrenceville School. She was a member of the first co-ed graduating class of The Lawrenceville School. She graduated with honors from Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
.
Whitney joined Oppenheimer in 1993 as a research associate covering the Oil and Gas Industry. In 1995, she joined the company's Specialty Finance Group. In 1998, she left the company, eventually becoming the head of financial institution research at Wachovia
Wachovia
Wachovia was a diversified financial services company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Before its acquisition by Wells Fargo in 2008, Wachovia was the fourth-largest bank holding company in the United States based on total assets...
. Whitney returned to Oppenheimer in 2004, where she covered banks and brokers. She resigned from Oppenheimer on February 19, 2009 to establish her own firm.
Rise to fame
Whitney wrote a particularly pessimistic, but accurate, report on CitigroupCitigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
on October 31, 2007, to which many Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
analysts, and the news media, paid attention. She has since followed this report with similar reports and predictions, which have tended to leave the companies involved with lower stock prices as the market has taken her opinion seriously. One of her claims is that goodwill
Goodwill (accounting)
Goodwill is an accounting concept meaning the value of an entity over and above the value of its assets. The term was originally used in accounting to express the intangible but quantifiable "prudent value" of an ongoing business beyond its assets, resulting perhaps because the reputation the firm...
is built into a lot of companies' share price
Share price
A share price is the price of a single share of a number of saleable stocks of a company. Once the stock is purchased, the owner becomes a shareholder of the company that issued the share.-Behavior of share prices:...
s, and that as the market moves into dark times, this goodwill will dissipate.
On December 19, 2010, Whitney was accused of stating that between fifty and a hundred counties, cities, and towns in the United States would have "significant" municipal bond defaults starting in 2011, totaling "hundreds of billions" of dollars in losses. She predicted this during her appearance on the broadcast of the CBS program 60 Minutes
60 Minutes
60 Minutes is an American television news magazine, which has run on CBS since 1968. The program was created by producer Don Hewitt who set it apart by using a unique style of reporter-centered investigation....
. Since the record amount of money lost in one year through municipal bond defaults is $8.2 billion, Ms. Whitney's comments about hundreds of billions in losses drew a great deal of attention, much of it critical. , "her prediction had yet to materialize."
According to Vanity Fair writer Michael Lewis, in his November 2011 article, California and Bust, "But that’s not at all what she had said: her words were being misrepresented so that her message might be more easily attacked. “She was referring to the complacency of the ratings agencies and investment advisers who say there is nothing to worry about,” said a person at 60 Minutes who reviewed the transcripts of the interview for me, to make sure I had heard what I thought I had heard. “She says there is something to worry about, and it will be apparent to everyone in the next 12 months.”
Recognition
In 2007, ForbesForbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
.com's "The Best Analysts: Stock Pickers" listed Whitney as the second best stock picker in the capital-market industry and the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
named her one of the fifty most powerful women in New York city.
Whitney's extremely bearish view on banks landed her on the cover of the August 18, 2008, issue of Fortune Magazine. Even before the problems that befell Merrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch is the wealth management division of Bank of America. With over 15,000 financial advisors and $2.2 trillion in client assets it is the world's largest brokerage. Formerly known as Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., prior to 2009 the firm was publicly owned and traded on the New York...
and Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was a global financial services firm. Before declaring bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth largest investment bank in the USA , doing business in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (former NYSE ticker...
in September, she said, "It feels like I'm at the epicenter of the biggest financial crisis in history, however even a broken clock is right twice a day". In October 2008, Whitney was ranked as one of Fortune 500’s “50 Most Powerful Women in Business.” In 2008, she won CNBC's "Power Player of the Year" over Jamie Dimon
Jamie Dimon
James "Jamie" Dimon is a business executive. He is the current chairman, president and chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, and previously served as a Class A director of the Board of Directors of the New York Federal Reserve, a three year term which started January 2007...
, Ben Bernanke
Ben Bernanke
Ben Shalom Bernanke is an American economist, and the current Chairman of the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States. During his tenure as Chairman, Bernanke has overseen the response of the Federal Reserve to late-2000s financial crisis....
, and Hank Paulson.
Personal life
Whitney married retired WWEWorld Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
professional wrestler and Fox News & Fox Business contributor John "Bradshaw" Layfield
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
on February 13, 2005, in Key West, Florida
Key West, Florida
Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city encompasses the island of Key West, the part of Stock Island north of U.S. 1 , Sigsbee Park , Fleming Key , and Sunset Key...
at the Wyndham Casa Marina.