Financial Winners & Losers: Lehman

Lehman Brothers (LEH Quote) topped financial news Thursday after the firm removed two top executives, but the bank's bad day wasn't enough to pull down the financial sector.

Lehman removed CFO Erin Callan and COO Joseph Gregory from their positions. The executives took the fall after having insisted there was no need to raise capital and then turning around and doing just that. The firm's credibility on the Street was damaged as a result and it seemed the only way to get past it was to push the executives out. Callan will remain with the company, but on the investment banking side. The stock ended down 4.4% at $22.70.

Another big loser for the day was KeyCorp (KEY Quote), which tumbled 23.7% to $11.98 after announcing it would need to raise capital. The Cleveland-based bank received an adverse ruling in a court case regarding the tax treatment of a lease transaction. The result is an expected charge in the quarter and a reduction of its dividend. The bank has increased its dividend for the past 43 years, and unhappy shareholders promptly sold the stock.

Thornburg Mortgage (TMA Quote) reported a monstrous loss of $3.31 billion, or $20.64 a share, for the first quarter, vs. net income of 62 cents a share in the previous year. The lender known for its large mortgage customers blamed fair value accounting for the losses and insisted its portfolio was performing well. The stock was only down four cents to 68 cents, but percentage wise a loss of 5%.