Wanna Buy a Share of WeWork?

One-time coworking giant WeWork is trying to keep itself trading on the New York Stock Exchange. The company’s share price has tumbled to barely a handful of dimes, and the Big Board has put it on notice that it might be delisted. Meanwhile, a prominent brokerage and lender has laid off 110 people in an attempt to save millions of dollars amid what it describes as a tough economy.

These stories are part of our Daily Round Up, Click here to get it delivered straight to your inbox.

— Tom Acitelli, Co-Deputy Editor

WeWork Fighting to Remain Traded on the New York Stock Exchange

WeWork is on thin ice with the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after its stock price dipped below $1 per share for more than a month. The coworking firm — which has struggled to keep its head above water for the last few years — announced Wednesday that it received a noncompliance notice from the NYSE that it could be delisted. WeWork leaders said the company will make an effort to avoid that outcome and will officially respond to the NYSE within 10 days with a plan to avoid becoming a penny stock. WeWork’s stock first dipped below $1 in early March, jumped back up soon after, and then began a long fall on March 22 to its current price of 48 cents a share. In a press release, WeWork said it has a six-month “cure period” to avoid getting delisted and can remain on the NYSE if, on the last day, it has “a closing share price of at least $1 and an average share price of at least $1 over the 30-trading-day period.”

Read the rest of the story

Walker & Dunlop Cuts 110 Employees, Blaming Economic Uncertainty

Walker & Dunlop laid off 110 employees this week, or about 8 percent of its staff, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing. In a memo to staff on Monday, CEO Willy Walker blamed the cuts on economic uncertainty brought on by the Federal Reserve’s continually raising interest rates and the recent collapse of two regional banks, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. “We held on to our entire team entering 2023 thinking that commercial real estate transactions would recover once the Federal Reserve stopped raising rates,” Walker wrote. “Unfortunately, with the Fed still raising rates, and the market disruption caused by the recent bank failures, we simply don’t have visibility into when market activity will return to normal and must take action.” The Maryland-based commercial real estate brokerage and lender plans to spend between $3 million and $4 million on severance in the second quarter of 2023, but expects the cuts to save $25 million in payroll this year, according to the SEC filing.

Read the rest of the story

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Enjoying these stories on all things CRE? Unlock unlimited access to our content?with a subscription. And for a daily version of this newsletter,?sign up here.