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The culture and entertainment publisher BuzzFeed Inc. has been granted an additional 180 days to raise the price of its stock above $1, according to SEC filings.
The publicly traded media company had originally received a notice of delisting from the Nasdaq on May 31 warning the publisher that it had 180 days, ending on Nov. 27, to get its stock above the $1 threshold.
Companies have to meet a number of criteria in order to trade on the Nasdaq, one of which is that their bid price must be above a $1 minimum. BuzzFeed Inc. stock is currently trading at 30 cents.
A representative for the company declined to comment. The publisher now has until May 28, 2024 to meet the minimum bid requirement, according to the filing.
As part of the agreement, BuzzFeed Inc. will transfer from the Nasdaq Global Market to the Nasdaq Capital Market, the third tier of the three-tiered Nasdaq Global Market Composite. Companies trading on the Capital Market generally have lower levels of market capitalization compared to the other two tiers.
Nasdaq made the decision to extend the deadline after BuzzFeed Inc. applied to transfer to the Capital Market and offered a notification of its intent to boost its stock price, according to the filing. The company stated its willingness to conduct a reverse stock split, if necessary, in order to do so.
If BuzzFeed Inc. is unable to meet the minimum bid requirement by May 28, it will receive another notice of delisting, which it could again appeal.
Publicly traded turmoil
The news marks a grim milestone for BuzzFeed Inc., which entered the public markets via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) in December 2021.
The company became the most prominent digital media publisher to go public, and its performance was seen as a barometer and comparison point for other publishers.
After its stock debuted at a price of $10 per share, its value quickly plummeted. The current total market capitalization of the company, $42 million, is lower than the $73 million it generated in its most recent quarter, according to public filings.
Like many publishers, BuzzFeed Inc. has struggled commercially in the face of a depressed advertising market.
It has also seen its editorial strategy—premised on platform distribution and scale—collapse as social media companies and search platforms refer fewer readers.
