There must be some very frustrated people at Facebook right now. Since the social network went public less than two weeks ago, the price of shares has being steadily going down, with yesterday seeing a 9.6% drop in value.
On Tuesday Facebook shares closed at $28.82, which means that they have lost almost a quarter of their value since the IPO. One reason that this has happened is because yesterday was the first day that options on Facebook stock began trading. It appears that most investors are betting Facebook shares will head lower.
[For a brief explanation of how ‘options’ work, see this article on Investopedia]
As if tumbling stock prices weren’t enough of a headache for Facebook, salt will have been rubbed into the wound by the news of Opera Software’s share value.
After suggestions that Facebook is looking to buy the Norwegian mobile technology firm, shares in Opera surged by a quarter on Tuesday morning. So for Facebook it must be incredibly frustrating that their hinted association with another company makes that company’s market value increase, while Facebook’s own share price continues to drop.
To add to Facebook’s woes, a group of investors has issued a class-action lawsuit against the social network, based on the allegations that Facebook revenues were revised down because of a surge in the number of people using mobile devices for apps and connection to websites. Targeted in the suit are Facebook and its founder Mark Zuckerberg, as well as the banks behind the flotation, including lead underwriter Morgan Stanley.