Lehman Seeking a Buyer, as Shares Spiral

Brad Hintz, analyst with Sanford Bernstein, believes those fears are significantly lessened by the fact that Lehman has the ability to borrow funds from the Federal Reserve, which Bear did not. The Fed gave investment banks the ability to borrow directly from the federal government at a discount in March, shortly after JPMorgan agreed to acquire Bear.

"We'd be talking about a whole different story if the Fed hadn't stepped in [to provide access to cheap funding for investment banks]," says, "We'd all be holding our breath."

However, noted bearish economist Nouriel Roubini tells TheStreet.com that the Fed could, and should, limit Lehman's access to the discount window, allowing creditors to take a hit.

"At this point, Lehman is toast," he says.

As far as Lehman's plan goes, many questions remain for shareholders. On a conference call Wednesday morning to discuss its preannouncement of third-quarter results, hastily convened on a day's notice to calm investor fears, analysts seemed frustrated in trying to understand important details.

Tanona, for example, excused himself for asking the same question an earlier analyst had posed about the investment management stake sale. "I just don't understand how you guys can sell 55% yet retain the vast majority of the pretax income," he said.

Lehman says it has not reached a deal to sell the stake yet but says it is "in advanced discussions with a number of potential partners."

The real estate spinoff will also require extensive negotiations with ratings agencies, auditors and law firms, over issues such as how much equity Lehman needs to put into the new company, and whether its valuations of the real estate are appropriate, according to Hintz.

Given those uncertainties, he is not recommending Lehman's stock.

"Of course not," he says. "It's a great time to buy Lehman bonds, with the credit spreads wide. The stock is a whole different issue."