Analyst: Merrill most primed for fall

After the collapse of Bear Stearns one financial analyst says Merrill Lynch & Co. is most at risk to fall, according to published reports.

After the collapse of Bear Stearns one financial analyst says Merrill Lynch & Co. is most at risk to fall, according to published reports.
The report written by Wachovia Corp. business analyst Douglas Sipkin said Merrill Lynch is the riskiest of the largest remaining U.S. investment banks and forecasted that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. stands to gain the most from Bear Stearn’s collapse, published reports said.
New York-based Merrill was cited as being the most at risk for collapse by Mr. Sipkin as a result of having $30.4 billion in securities related to subprime mortgages and a 52% liquidity ratio, according to published reports.
Other Wall Street giants like Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Morgan Stanley will likely remain in business according to Mr. Sipkin, while New York-based Goldman was viewed as being the most immune from market risks because of being able to capitalize on migrating prime brokerage balances, published reports said.
Merrill Lynch officials did not respond to a call for comment.