The day has come for Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) and Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM). Freddie Mac has notified the New York Stock Exchange of its intent to delist its common stock from NYSE trading. It is also affecting the 20 listed classes of its preferred stock which trade on the NYSE. The issue is going to affect Fannie Mae as well and both stocks were halted.
This notice was made after a directive by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), Freddie Mac’s conservator. The directive requires Freddie Mac to delist its common and preferred securities from the NYSE, and this will affect Fannie Mae as well it appears as the FHFA issued similar directives to both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.
Freddie Mac intends to file a Notification of Removal from Listing on or about June 28, 2010 and it anticipates that the delisting of its common and preferred stock from the NYSE will become effective on or about July 8, 2010.
Freddie Mac notes: After the delisting of our equity securities from the NYSE, we expect that our common stock and the classes of preferred stock that were previously listed on the NYSE will be traded in the over-the-counter market and quoted on OTC Bulletin Board (OTCBB) under a ticker symbol that has yet to be assigned.
What is funny is that the FHFA thinks this is a mere mechanical event:
- “FHFA’s determination to direct each company to delist does not constitute any reflection on either Enterprise’s current performance or future direction, nor does delisting imply any other findings or determination on the part of FHFA as regulator or conservator,” said FHFA Acting Director Edward J. DeMarco. “The determination to direct delisting is related to stock exchange requirements for maintaining price levels and curing deficiencies,” DeMarco said.
In short, if you own Freddie Mac (and Fannie Mae) you own an OTC stock now rather than just an NYSE penny stock.
The FHFA release is here. Adios!
JON C. OGG
Sponsor: 3 Recovery Stocks to Own Now – Get the names of the best cheap stocks to rebuild your wealth in 2010 and beyond.
Cash Back Credit Cards Have Never Been This Good
Credit card companies are at war, handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers. A good cash back card can be worth thousands of dollars a year in free money, not to mention other perks like travel, insurance, and access to fancy lounges. See our top picks for the best credit cards today. You won’t want to miss some of these offers.
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.