U.S. Financials: Time to Hit the Books

or time to sell?

Some of the country's most storied investment banks are trading at or below book value, and skittish investors would do well to take another look at their shares.

Prior to the mid-1980s, when big investment banks like Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs were lucrative private partnerships, only privileged employees were entitled to purchase their equity at book value.

Now, given the broad, recent selloff in the sector, anyone can buy shares of leading U.S. financial companies near book value or a discount from book. Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley trade below book, or shareholder equity per share, while Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo are at small premiums to book.

It frequently pays to buy profitable financial companies at these levels, because book indicates liquidation ...

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Well there it is! The mention of book value that I been expected to be thrown around here sooner or later in the banking sector.Does this warrant a bounce in the $XLF  or bank stocks in general. I personally have slowly bought GS in 50 share clips over last few months in 2 of my Iras and I am stuck in a position 100 shares that i went against my rule of holding into earnings back in January, and then continued to get hit and dragged down with the entire banking sector Currently GS is my biggest loss to date. I was close to my thresh hold on Friday with the banks and I really doubt this will be the catalyst I've been looking for. 

Book Value is something that sounds good and looks good on paper, but there is really do definite way to  measure the book value when Banks are not required to accurately report there holding and losses

And who really determines the value of their assets? The banks themselves?

Do banks really have an idea on what bad loans they are holding..  does anyone know anything anymore. I liked it a lot better when Book value was the total value of the company's assets that shareholders would theoretically receive if a company were liquidated. These companies don't know what there liabilities are so how can we determine Book value.. It's all a big scam

I am starting to feel jaded here, And I am about to add banks with the Chinese Stocks under the do not trade category.