BlackBerry today announced its pending transfer of the listing of its common stock from the NASDAQ Global Select Market (“NASDAQ”) to the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”).
The company expects to begin trading on the NYSE on October 16, under the new ticker symbol “BB”. The company will continue to trade on the NASDAQ until the transfer is completed. BlackBerry’s listing on the TSX will not change.
John Chen, Executive Chairman and CEO, BlackBerry stated,
“Many of the world’s greatest brands, including a large number of our customers and partners, are listed on the NYSE, and we look forward to joining them,”
“As we continue to advance our growth strategy, we believe that our partnership with the NYSE will further raise the profile of our company and strengthen the value of our BlackBerry Secure brand.”
The primary advantages for a company of listing on the Nasdaq exchange are lower listing fees and lower minimum requirements to qualify for a listing. The fact that Nasdaq features all-electronic trading is considered an advantage by many traders as well.
The main disadvantage of a Nasdaq listing as compared to a listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or the London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a perception of less prestige, less of a blue-chip status for a company, although this perception has faded considerably as major firms such as Apple, Google and Microsoft have become notable Nasdaq exchange-traded successes.
As of 2014, to qualify to be listed on the Nasdaq exchange, a business must have earned in excess of $11 million in the past three years and must have at least 1.25 million shares of stock issued, with a total market value of at least $70 million.
Tom Farley, President of the NYSE said,
“We are honored to have BlackBerry join the NYSE community,”
“BlackBerry is an innovative mobile pioneer that has successfully evolved to become an enterprise cybersecurity software company. We look forward to supporting BlackBerry’s continued growth and providing the unique benefits of our market, solutions and community to the company and its shareholders.”
The NYSE listing requirements specify that a company’s total outstanding share value must exceed $100 million. The NYSE listing fee for an initial public offering (IPO) is exactly twice that of the Nasdaq, with the NYSE fee for an IPO listing at $250,000, compared to the Nasdaq IPO fee of $125,000.
John Tuttle, NYSE Global Head of Listings said,
“We are excited that BlackBerry will continue their journey as an NYSE-listed company alongside the world’s most innovative technology companies,”
In celebration of the transfer, representatives from BlackBerry will ring the NYSE Opening Bell at 9:30 a.m. ET on October 16, 2017.
