4th Newspaper Company to Be Delisted? ACN Receives AMEX Warning

By: Mark Fitzgerald Dallas-based American Community Newspapers (ACN) could become the fourth newspaper company kicked off a major stock exchange this year.

In a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing late Friday, ACN disclosed it has been warned that it risks delisting from the American Stock Exchange (AMEX) for failing to file a 10-Q quarterly report with regulators. As E&P reported Thursday, the publisher of the Stillwater (Minn.) Gazette and 100 other community papers and shoppers reported a preliminary $69.2 million second-quarter loss that included an estimated $69.4 million non-cash goodwill impairment charge.

ACN said in its SEC filing that it intends to file the report as soon as it is possible to "measure and recognize the impact" of the uncertain goodwill impairment.

To maintain its AMEX listing, ACN said, it must submit a plan to the exchange by Sept. 4 outlining how it will come into compliance.

Also on Friday, GateHouse Media Inc. disclosed it has been notified by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) that it could be delisted if it does not take action to get its stock price, which closed the week at 60 cents a share, consistently above $1, and maintain a market capitalization above $75 million.

Earlier this year, Journal Register Co. and Sun-Times Media Group received similar warnings for low share prices and market caps. Both now trade on Over-The-Counter markets.

ACN (AMEX: ANE) closed Friday at a fraction of a cent below 20 cents, down 4 cents, or 28.14% from its opening. The thinly traded stock -- just 2,000 shares traded hands Friday, below even its anemic three-month average volume of 12,000 -- has sold in a 52-week range of 10 cents to $4.50. It last traded above $1 for an entire trading session on March 3.