SeaStar Medical Holding Corporation (ICU) is having a rough Friday, with shares down over 20% after the company pulled the trigger on a reverse stock split. It's the kind of move that rarely inspires investor confidence, even when it's purely mechanical.

The Split Details

According to an SEC filing, shareholders approved a ten-for-one reverse stock split this week. Here's how it works: every 10 shares of the company's issued and outstanding common stock automatically combine into one share. The effective date is January 2, so if you're holding SeaStar shares, get ready for some portfolio math.

The company won't be issuing fractional shares as part of this process. Instead, any leftover fractions get rounded up to the next whole number, which is a small win for shareholders on the margins. After the dust settles, SeaStar Medical will have approximately 3.8 million shares of common stock outstanding.

Why The Drop?

Reverse splits are technically neutral events—they don't change the underlying value of your holdings. But markets don't always see it that way. These moves often signal a company struggling to maintain listing requirements or boost a depressed share price, and investors tend to interpret them as red flags.

Price Action: SeaStar Medical shares were trading at $0.24, down 20.38% at the time of publication.