Grove Collaborative has fallen below $50m on both of the tests the New York Stock Exchange applies together, and it has 45 days to write a plan
The New York Stock Exchange has two ways of measuring whether a listed company is big enough to stay, and Grove Collaborative has failed them both.
The San Francisco company disclosed on Tuesday afternoon that it received written notice from the exchange on 7 August that it does not comply with Section 802.01B of the Listed Company Manual. That section asks for an average market capitalisation of at least $50.0m over a consecutive 30 trading day period, and stockholders' equity of at least $50.0m. Both, not either. The standard is written so that a company with thin equity but a healthy market value does not trip it, and neither does the reverse.
Grove is under $50m on each measure. Neither the filing nor the press release says by how much, and no figure of any kind appears in either document apart from the two thresholds themselves.
The clock, which is the substance of the notice
What the company now owes the exchange is a business plan.
It has 45 days from receipt to file one showing how it expects to return to compliance within nine months. On the notice's own date of 7 August, that is a plan due by 21 September and a compliance window closing on 7 May 2027. The exchange then takes up to 45 days of its own to decide whether the plan is, in the press release's phrase, a reasonable demonstration of an ability to conform.
If it is accepted, the shares keep trading through the cure period under continued review. If the plan is late or refused, the release says the exchange could begin delisting proceedings.
What the notice does not do
It does not affect the listing now. That sentence appears in both documents, and it is accurate: Class A shares continue to trade as GROV, subject to the other listing standards.
Grove came to the public market through a special purpose acquisition company in 2022 and sells household and personal care goods online. It is a public benefit corporation and a certified B Corp, and it still ticks the emerging growth company box on the cover of its filings.
The company says it intends to submit a plan. It did not say on Tuesday what will be in it.