The New York Stock Exchange has notified Rite Aid that it is no longer in compliance with minimum listing requirements.
Rite Aid announced the NYSE notification Oct. 4, stating it is noncompliant with the stock exchange's minimum market capitalization and minimum stock price standards. NYSE has a minimum stock price of $4; Rite Aid shares were priced at 53 cents as of Oct. 5.
Rite Aid noted that it is operating under "certain cure periods" under NYSE rules and that Rite Aid common stock will continue to be listed and traded throughout those periods, which were not defined. Rite Aid said it can provide no assurances that it will be able to regain compliance with the NYSE's continued listing standards.
The company, which has 2,100 stores across the U.S., said it is reviewing strategic alternatives to recapitalize, refinance or "otherwise optimize" its capital structure, which could include the pursuit of "one or more significant transactions or other remedial measures."
It's been a difficult period for the drugstore chain, with an abrupt CEO change to start the year and reports of bankruptcy preparation and closure of hundreds of stores. In March, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Rite Aid claiming it violated the Controlled Substances Act, alleging that the company filled hundreds of thousands of prescriptions that did not meet legal requirements from May 2014 through June 2019.
The close call with NYSE isn't Rite Aid's first in recent years. In 2019, the company also disclosed its NYSE listing was at risk after shares fell 64 percent year over year to 75 cents per share.