Fannie, Freddie Shares Routed TO NYSE Arca
09/11 12:32 PM
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--The New York Stock Exchange said early Thursday trading in Fannie Mae (FNM:$0.7348,$-0.0052,-0.70%) and Freddie Mac (FRE:$0.619400,$-0.040600,-6.15%) have moved off the floor of the exchange.
With the government's seizure of the two mortgage giants over the weekend, shareholders of the two government sponsored enterprises took the move as a sign to sell. At the end of trading Monday, both stocks had market capitalizations below $800 million, with Fannie closing at 73 cents and Freddie at 88 cents.
Traditionally, once a stock falls below $1.05, it is moved to the electronic platform, such as NYSE Arca, and can only return to the exchange after being traded above $1.10 for an entire day. Earlier this week, the exchange said it decided not to relocate trading of the shares because it expected heavy trading volume and order from investors. But that exemption faded Thursday, with Fannie recently at 73 cents and Freddie trading at 63 cents.
"Effective immediately, consistent with the guidelines under the NYSE Sub- penny Trading Rule, orders in Fannie Mae (FNM:$0.7348,$-0.0052,-0.70%) and Freddie Mac (FRE:$0.619400,$-0.040600,-6.15%) common will be routed to NYSE Arca with NYSE Arca pricing applied," the exchange said in a statement.
The NYSE added that both companies, as well as their preferred shares, continue to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
-By Geoffrey Rogow; Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5360; geoffrey.rogow@ dowjones.com
