Facebook Ipo, Facebook Stock | featured news

With the value of its shares down over 50 percent since its highly anticipated IPO, is the company making a hash of the public relations disaster it is now facing; and, just as important, why has Zuckerberg remained quiet about the state of the company?

Facebook's beleaguered stock has lost more than half of its value since its initial public offering three months ago. Facebook Inc. hit a new low of $18.75 before bouncing back to $19.01 - down 4 cents - in morning trading Monday. The social networking icon's much-anticipated IPO turned sour amid technical problems on the NASDAQ stock market and high expectations. The stock has not surpassed its $38 IPO price since its first trading day.

Facebook Inc shares sank as much 4.3 percent on Friday to set a new low, a day after early investors got the green light to sell for the first time. More than 270 million shares owned by the early investors became available for trade on Thursday after a 3-month curb on sales ended. That's more than one-half the 421 million shares sold in its initial public offering on May 18.

Facebook's early investors and a handful of directors will become eligible on Thursday to sell stock they own in the social networking company. It marks the beginning of a time-honored process for public companies, one that will give many Facebook employees the same right to sell their shares this fall.

Facebook’s stock price reached a new low Thursday as shares of the world's largest social network fell below $20 for the first time, down by nearly half from its $38 initial public offering price.

Although many investors had hoped for a big first-day pop, Facebook's stock opened on May 18 at $42.05 and fluctuated between $45 and $38 throughout the day. It closed barely above its IPO price, at $38.23. Since the IPO, the stock has been down on seven trading days and up on four. Facebook's stock price has gone as low as $26.44 since the IPO.

Facebook's stock has fallen below $30 for the first time since its much-awaited public debut this month.