Today, AOL stock begins trading on the NYSE on the S&P MidCap 400 Index as it spins off from Time Warner. Back in 2001, when the merger of Time Warner and AOL took place, AOL stock was valued at as much as $165 billion. Today, AOL stock is valued around $2.8 billion.
AOL was one of the first Internet stocks added to the S&P 500 Index in the 1990′s which gave a lot a credibility to the hot new Internet stocks that were displacing more established firms on the stock exchange. Today, AOL doesn’t qualify for the S&P 500 Index because its value is below $3 billion. If the stock crosses the line, it can move up from S&P MidCap 400 Index and back to the S&P 500 Index.
Who’s Place Did AOL Take On The New York Stock Exchange?
AOL replaces Imation Corp., whose market capitalization dropped below the $750 million minimum requirement to remain on the NYSE. Imation is a spin-off of 3M that designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of recordable data storage media and consumer electronics products.
Will The New AOL Make It?
We’ll find out how AOL makes it on its own. Today, AOL has a new look, new logo, and new ad campaign. Its CEO, Tim Armstrong, joined AOL last March from Google and has plans for AOL’s growth that include delivery of premium content that include news and local information, communications like instant messaging and online advertising. AOL is way beyond “You’ve Got Mail,” but we’ll see if it’s got enough mojo to propel it back to the S&P 500. Let’s just hope that history doesn’t repeat itself.
