On October 1, 2013, the NYSE proposed a rule change that would amend Section 802.01B of its Listed Company Manual (Manual), which sets out certain quantitative continued listing standards for operating companies.

Update: Though originally published on October 1, the initial text of the rule proposal was removed from the NYSE’s website and subsequently republished (with insignificant changes) on October 8. The proposal originally published on October 1 is no longer publicly available.

Currently, all operating companies must maintain a minimum average closing price, among other continued listing requirements, all of which are included in Section 802.01 of the Manual. The additional financial standards in Section 802.01B vary depending on the initial listing standard in Section 102.01C or 103.01B of the Manual under which a company originally listed.

The proposed rule change would amend Section 802.01B so that all operating companies, regardless of the standard under which they initially qualified for listing, would be subject to the same financial standards. Under the proposal, all operating companies would be required to maintain both:

In its proposal, the NYSE acknowledged that a $50 million minimum average global market capitalization is the lowest level currently required under all of its existing continued listing requirements. However, the NYSE evaluated the current status of its listed companies before deciding that harmonizing the additional financial standards would not weaken the quality of its listing program.

Update: On December 9, 2013, the SEC approved the proposed rule change.

To learn more about the NYSE's quantitative listing requirements, see Initial Listing Requirements Chart: New York Stock Exchange and Continued Listing Requirements Chart: New York Stock Exchange.