PREVIEW-At Citigroup, a big loss is only part of the story

By Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK, April 10 (Reuters) - When Citigroup Inc reports what is expected to be its second straight giant quarterly loss on April 18, the actual numbers may be almost secondary.

Ten years after Sanford "Sandy" Weill created what he thought would be a global banking colossus, Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research) has instead turned inward, looking for more businesses to shed, costs to cut and infrastructure to tighten.

Analysts on average expect the bank to report a first- quarter loss of 95 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates. That would follow a loss the prior quarter of $9.83 billion, or $1.99 per share.

The difficulty New York-based Citigroup has had navigating the global credit crisis has taken a toll on its stock.

Through Wednesday, Citigroup stock had fallen 55 percent in the last year, giving the bank a market value of roughly $119 billion based on reported shares. Its $23.58 share price was barely above its year-end book value of $22.74 per share. The shares bottomed at $18 on March 17.

Investors want signs that Citigroup has control of its future losses and can estimate their extent and duration. They also seek new Chief Executive Vikram Pandit's vision for where he wants the largest U.S. bank by assets to be when it grows up.

"They're moving in the right direction, by divesting non- core assets, right-sizing the company and freeing up liquidity," said Chris Armbruster, an analyst at Al Frank Asset Management in Laguna Beach, California, which owns Citigroup shares. "We want to see a more concrete plan."

Even bond investors have shown caution.