Laredo's IBC and Addison's CECO Start Trading on the Texas Stock Exchange. Here Is Who Has Moved So Far
Two Texas companies left Nasdaq for the Dallas-based Texas Stock Exchange on Monday. Two weeks into corporate listings, here is who has moved, who is only dipping a toe in, and what it means for shareholders.
Two more Texas companies started the week on the Texas Stock Exchange. International Bancshares Corp. of Laredo and CECO Environmental Corp. of Addison both moved the primary listing of their common stock from Nasdaq to the Dallas-based exchange, with trading set to begin at Monday’s market open, according to the TXSE listings calendar.
Both kept their ticker symbols, IBOC and CECO. Both told shareholders they need not do anything.
It is the latest step for an exchange that, two weeks ago, had no corporate primary listings at all.
Laredo’s bank comes home
IBC is one of the largest independent bank holding companies in Texas. Its flagship bank was founded in Laredo in 1966, and today it reports about $17 billion in assets, five banks, and 165 facilities serving 75 communities across Texas and Oklahoma, according to the company’s announcement.
"Texas has long been a place where free enterprise principles have allowed businesses to build, grow and lead, and we are excited to continue that legacy by bringing IBC’s primary listing to the state where our business has prospered for 60 years," said Dennis E. Nixon, IBC’s chairman and CEO. The company plans a closing-bell ceremony in Houston on Dec. 7.
An industrial first
CECO makes equipment and systems for industrial air, industrial water and energy markets and is headquartered in Addison. Its Oct. 2 announcement called it the first multi-industrial company to move its primary listing to TXSE.
"This move builds upon our strong presence in Texas, which includes our global headquarters in Addison and a large employee base in the state," said Todd Gleason, CECO’s chairman and CEO. He also thanked Nasdaq for its "partnership and support" through the company’s growth.
Who has moved so far
TXSE began trading operations in July and added its first primary listings, two Texas Capital exchange-traded funds, on Sept. 16, The Dallas Express reported. Corporate listings began Oct. 5. Since then, according to the exchange’s calendar and announcements:
Oct. 5: Energy Transfer, Sunoco, SunocoCorp and USA Compression, which the exchange said represent nearly $100 billion in combined market value, became the first corporate primary listings. Dillard’s moved over the same day from the New York Stock Exchange. TXSE said the Arkansas-based retailer was the first company outside Texas to make its primary listing there, after reincorporating in Texas.
Oct. 7: Charles Schwab, headquartered in Westlake, began a secondary listing on TXSE but kept its primary listing on the NYSE, according to a Schwab release. Schwab was among TXSE’s original investors.
Oct. 8: Texas Capital Bancshares moved its common and preferred stock.
Oct. 13: Origin Bank moved its common stock.
Oct. 19: CECO and IBC.
What it means if you own the stock
For most shareholders, very little changes day to day. A primary listing establishes which exchange is responsible for a company’s listing relationship, but the stock can still trade on multiple venues, as The Dallas Express explained. Your brokerage account should show the same ticker.
What changes is competition. TXSE was built to compete with established exchanges, including the NYSE and Nasdaq, The Dallas Express reported, and it says it is backed by some of the largest financial firms in the world. Competition tends to sharpen service and pricing, and that is good for companies and the people who invest in them.
It is worth keeping perspective, though. A company is not worth more because its listing moved closer to home. Earnings, debt, management and honest books still decide whether a stock is a good investment. A Texas address on the exchange does not change that.
The bigger picture
The moves come as Texas keeps recruiting companies and jobs, from Texas Enterprise Fund deals like Blue Origin’s to the 154,300 jobs the state added over the past year. The Texas Stock Exchange is a bet that capital markets will follow the companies.
Two weeks in, it has a short list of names, many of them Texas-based. Schwab’s choice of a secondary listing shows that some big companies are trying TXSE without leaving New York. The next test is whether more large companies from outside Texas follow Dillard’s and make the full move.
