After abrupt four-week trading halt, Sezzle returns to Nasdaq

Buy-now-pay-later company Sezzle Inc. returned to the Nasdaq market Thursday, four weeks after it was hit with a trading halt just a few hours into its debut on the exchange.

Nasdaq halted trading in Sezzle's stock because not enough common shares were available to make a market due to the large number of company shares held in Australia, where the company has been publicly traded since 2019.

On Thursday ticker symbol SEZL resumed trading. For the last month its price has been frozen at $81.08 per share.

"During the course of the Nasdaq trading halt, the number of publicly available shares of Sezzle common stock eligible for trading in the U.S. ... has increased," said Minneapolis-based Sezzle in a statement.

Sezzle made a splashy debut on the Nasdaq stock exchange on Aug. 17. Sezzle's stock quickly shot up 258% and trading was halted after two hours.

In sharp contrast to its first day on Nasdaq, Sezzle's stock dropped more than 80% on Thursday.

The company did not give more detail — and said little during the trading halt.

During that time, a representative with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) referred questions to Nasdaq, and a Nasdaq media contact declined to comment on Sezzle's situation.

Investors in Australia own Sezzle stock through Chess Depositary Interests (CDIs) that allow American companies to trade on the Australian Securities Exchange. Sezzle said that CDIs can be converted into common stock.

Sezzle stock will continue to trade on ASX.

Sezzle went public on Nasdaq through a direct listing with no underwriters. A direct listing offers existing stock for sale as opposed to an initial public offering which issues new shares. A direct listing is less expensive than an IPO because a company doesn't have to pay investment bank fees. A company does not raise funds through a direct listing but provides liquidity for existing shareholders, including employees.

The buy-now-pay-later business is booming and Sezzle has established a strong presence in the industry.

In a research report after the company reported its second-quarter earnings, CapitalCube, a financial data analysis firm, found that Sezzle is keeping up with competitors.

"[Sezzle's] change in revenue this period compared to the same period last year of 19.44% is almost the same as its change in earnings, and is about average among the announced results thus far in its peer group, suggesting that [Sezzle] is holding onto its market share," wrote analysts from CapitalCube, which is owned by Toronto-based Analytix Insight.

Sezzle posted a net loss of $75.2 million for 2021 and a net loss of $38.1 million for 2022. Startups typically lose money for several years while the company builds up its business.

Sezzle appeared to have turned a corner this year, posting profits for the first two quarters.