# Did stockholders in WaMu lose it all????? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 27, 2008, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489 "2008-09-27T20:10:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Anise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anise/32/21721_2.png) [@Anise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anise)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2008, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/1 "2008-09-27T20:10:13Z")
It SEEMS like there should be a thread on this exact topic already, but if so, I can’t find it… there are sort-of-related topics, but not this one, from what I’ve seen. Okay, I should be getting a definitive answer from my financial advisor next week, but in the meantime, does anybody actually KNOW what happened to WaMu’s stock value? Is it zero? Is it zero if you tried to cash it out right now, but worth something if you hold on? Will JP Morgan-Chase eventually put some value into it? Does it have some kind of worth or potential worth that means it makes sense to sit tight and wait to see what happens? Is my $20,000 loss just on paper, or is it real live money??? Remember all those cartoons of stockholders jumping out windows after the big crash of 1929?? (Oh, I’m not going to do THAT!) Ahem. Anyway, some answers or just ideas would be greatly appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2008, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/2 "2008-09-27T20:14:29Z")
It closed at 16 cents per share. [WM](http://www.marketwatch.com/quotes/wm) Not sure what it will be trading at on Monday. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2008, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/3 "2008-09-27T20:17:46Z")
When was the last time you checked on your 20K. Over the last year it looks like it steadily decresed from $40 to $0.16. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2008, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/4 "2008-09-27T20:25:14Z")
If they had been holding for very long, they had already lost most of their stake anyway. A year ago, WM was trading at $35. Somebody who bought for $4 or so 3 months ago should have known they were making a very risky investment, and could easily lose the entire thing. It closed at $1.69 on Sept 25, before the drop to $0.16 the next day. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2008, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/5 "2008-09-27T20:42:27Z")
Washington Mutual failed and was seized from its owners (you and the other shareholders) by the FDIC. At that point your stock became worthless. The FDIC then sold the bank to JP Morgan. Your $20K is gone. $0.16 is where the stock price closed on Thursday afternoon, before any of this happened. No one can trade it anymore. > **[Waste Management, Inc. (WM) Stock Price & News - Google Finance](https://www.google.com/finance/quote/WM:NYSE)** > > Get the latest Waste Management, Inc. (WM) real-time quote, historical performance, charts, and other financial information to help you make more informed trading and investment decisions. ---
**Author:** ![Anise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anise/32/21721_2.png) [@Anise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anise)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2008, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/6 "2008-09-27T23:42:16Z")
That may be what my financial advisor tells me too. Probably better to sit tight for now and wait to see what he says-- I really have heard so many different things. There’s definitely no way to get any money out of it NOW, anyway. I’ve certainly made my little bit of money on WaMu over the years. Hey! This would be a good time to practice all the techniques of mindfulness meditation! 😉 Stay in the moment, because the present moment is all we have. It’s useless to fight the present or to say it shouldn’t be; a chain of events has led up to what we are experiencing now. Ommmmm… (still can’t get into the lotus position) You know, I highly recommend mindfulness techniques. This is an acid test for them if anything ever would be, and they really do work! ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2008, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/7 "2008-09-27T23:59:20Z")
[The Wall Street Journal](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122243718542978849.html?mod=special_page_campaign2008_mostpop) seems to think you’re out of luck too: > [@](#): > > Holders of the thrift’s common stock are likely to be wiped out, since J.P. Morgan bought essentially all of WaMu’s assets, leaving the holding company under Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. control. WaMu’s holding company is likely to be liquidated. Interesting that you can buy a company’s assets but not its debts. That sounds like a pretty good deal to me. The article did specify common stock. Maybe there’s a chance for holders of _preferred_ stock, but it looks grim. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/8 "2008-09-28T00:00:06Z")
> [@Anise](#): > > That may be what my financial advisor tells me too. Probably better to sit tight for now and wait to see what he says-- I really have heard so many different things. This may be the one good thing to come out of your loss. All those people who told you anything other than your $20,000 is gone? Now you’ll know never to ask those people about finances ever again. Or certainly not to listen to anything they say if they insist on forcing their opinions on you. Knowing who not to ask is often as important as knowing who to ask. ---
**Author:** ![MOIDALIZE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@MOIDALIZE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MOIDALIZE)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/9 "2008-09-28T01:50:08Z")
> [@TWDuke](#): > > [The Wall Street Journal](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122243718542978849.html?mod=special_page_campaign2008_mostpop) seems to think you’re out of luck too:Interesting that you can buy a company’s assets but not its debts. That sounds like a pretty good deal to me. > > The article did specify common stock. Maybe there’s a chance for holders of _preferred_ stock, but it looks grim. As part of the deal, Wamu had to file for bankruptcy. ---
**Author:** ![R.P.McMurphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@R.P.McMurphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R.P.McMurphy)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/10 "2008-09-28T12:47:18Z")
But you can use your loss as a tax deduction. Conditions apply. Consult your tax accountant. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2008, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-stockholders-in-wamu-lose-it-all/465489/11 "2008-09-28T14:14:28Z")
> [@TWDuke](#): > > [The Wall Street Journal](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122243718542978849.html?mod=special_page_campaign2008_mostpop) seems to think you’re out of luck too:Interesting that you can buy a company’s assets but not its debts. That sounds like a pretty good deal to me. > > The article did specify common stock. Maybe there’s a chance for holders of _preferred_ stock, but it looks grim. a Assets are sold so that the debts can be paid. Typically, creditors receive only a fraction of what they are owed.