[ by Howard Haykin ] Citigroup Inc. is looking at possibly writing down  the value of the Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (MSSB) joint venture, according to Barclays analyst Jason Goldberg.  Okay, but are you sure that the write-down could approach $6,000,000,000?????? Goldberg gets these #'s from the lender, who's negotiating the sale of a 14% stake from Citi to Morgan Stanley.  The lender believes the venture's tangible book value could decline by 2.5% as a result of the deal.  Such a charge would be more than double MSSB's anticipated 3rd quarter profits, according to a Bloomberg composite of 13 analysts.

[C-I Note: FYI ... Barclays' analyst Goldberg has had an overweight rating on Citigroup since at least March 24, 2004, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The shares have dropped 94% since then.]

The banks dispute the value of the brokerage, leading Citigroup last month to say that it may take a "significant" charge as the deal is completed.  Ed Najarian, an analyst at International Strategy & Investment Group Inc., estimated a $3.3 billion charge and Charles Peabody at Portales Partners LLC predicted $3.2 billion. Turn for Advice. The banks hired Perella Weinberg Partners LP to decide the stake’s value. The deal is set to be completed by 9/7/12.   Morgan Stanley owns 51% of the brokerage;  Citigroup owns 49%. Tangible book value is a measure of how much a company could fetch if liquidated. For further details, go to:  [Bloomberg, 8/7/12].