Gleacher announces 1-for-20 reverse stock split

NEW YORK (AP) -- Investment bank Gleacher & Co. has announced a 1-for-20 reverse stock split as it continues pondering a potential sale of the company. The news comes less than a week after Gleacher disclosed that it fired its CEO and chief operating officer.

A reverse stock split reduces the number of shares in circulation. Gleacher' move will give stockholders 1 share for every 20 shares they own.

The company did not say why it was performing the reverse stock split. It did say that the move was approved by its shareholders a week ago during its annual stockholders meeting. The board was authorized to implement the reverse stock split and to determine the ratio of the split, within a range of not less than 1-for-10 but not more than 1-for-20.

The reverse stock split is effective after the market close on Thursday. Shares will start trading on a split-adjusted basis on Friday. It will continue to list on the Nasdaq Global Market under the "GLCH" ticker symbol.

The reverse stock split comes days after Gleacher announced the firing of CEO Thomas Hughes and COO John Griff in a regulatory filing. That follows an April announcement by Gleacher that it might eliminate up to about 160 jobs. And in March the New York company disclosed that its finances had worsened and that it was again considering a sale of the company. It has already exited its fixed-income business, and it agreed to jettison most of its ClearPoint home mortgage business for an undisclosed amount in February.

Gleacher's stock shed about 1 cent to 69 cents in Thursday afternoon trading.