Wireless Ronin Stock Still Listed on NASDAQ… For Now
Digital signage provider Wireless Ronin Technologies (NASDAQ: RNIN) announced yesterday that it has received the decision of the Hearings Panel of The NASDAQ Stock Market, notifying Ronin that it has granted the company’s request for continued listing of its common stock, subject to certain conditions.
The decision followed the company’s failure to comply with the minimum bid price requirement for continued listing set forth in NASDAQ Listing Rule 5550(a)(2) and the company’s appeal to the Hearings Panel of the staff’s determination to delist.
In accordance with the Hearings Panel’s decision, on or before December 31, 2012, the Company must evidence a closing bid price of at least $1.00 per share for a minimum of ten consecutive business days.
If Ronin’s common stock does not continue to be listed on The NASDAQ Capital Market, its shares would become subject to certain rules of the SEC relating to “penny stocks.” Such rules require broker-dealers to make a suitability determination for purchasers and to receive the purchaser’s prior written consent for a purchase transaction, thus restricting the ability to purchase or sell the shares in the open market. In addition, trading, if any, would be conducted in the over-the-counter market in the so-called “pink sheets” or on the OTC Bulletin Board, which was established for securities that do not meet NASDAQ listing requirements. Consequently, selling the shares would be more difficult because smaller quantities could be bought and sold, transactions could be delayed, and security analyst and news media coverage of the company may be reduced. These factors could result in lower prices and larger spreads in the bid and ask prices for the shares. There can be no assurance that Ronin’s common stock will continue to be listed on The NASDAQ Capital Market.