The Reverse Splits: Blockbuster Has 45 Days to Get Back in NYSE's Good Graces

By Robert Wilonsky Mon., Mar. 29 2010 at 4:20 PM

Categories: Biz, From the RTF Dept.

A couple of weeks back, we read the entirety of Blockbuster's annual report and discovered one significant bit of bad news that had gone unnoticed elsewhere: The New York Stock Exchange sent the downtown Dallas-based company a warning that if it didn't get its stock price back above one dollar pronto, Blockbuster's in danger of being delisted. In a press release today, the company also warned: "It has been notified by the New York Stock Exchange that its average global market capitalization had fallen below $75 million over a 30 trading-day period." The clock's running on a 45-day period to submit a plan to get back in compliance or else.

So, CEO Jim Keyes, what's the plan? "We intend to promptly submit a plan to the NYSE, which will outline the proactive steps we plan to take to remedy the Company's non-compliance by September of 2011." In other words, you'll have to wait till April 16 to find out, so there. One other bit of bad news: Celebrated MLB.com CEO Bob Bowman announced today he's dropping off the Blockbuster board.

Meanwhile, shares have dropped 10 percent today ... to a whole 28 cents. That said, the same release -- issued in advance of the May 26 shareholders meeting at Renaissance Tower -- does propose one way to bump the price of shares: reverse stock split, a move I mastered during my days as a cheerleader. Shareholders will be asked to approve the move. Hmmm, let me and my newly acquired 100 shares think about that one for a while.

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