Facebook Stock Falls Almost 10% After 'Worst IPO In A Decade'

Facebook Stock Plummets 10% In A Day After 'Worst IPO In A Decade'

Facebook's stock price fell almost 10% on Tuesday leading analysts to declare its initial public offering (IPO) last Friday as one of the worst in financial history.

The social network's Nasdaq trading price fell as low as $28.65, down from $38 or more than 20% since its launch.

Facebook raised $16bn in its IPO, but has subsequently produced the worst five-day return among the 10 largest US IPOs in the last decade.

The stock began the day at $31.69 but plummeted in afternoon trading.

Bloomberg analyst Sheila Dharmarajan said the IPO was the biggest flop in 10 years, and had produced the worst return among virtually any recent deal of its size.

However some analysts remained optimistic, with one pointing out that Amazon's own stock price fell well below its own IPO value for months before recovering.

The company is already facing lawsuits after investors claimed they were misled about the true value of its stock before the IPO.

Meanwhile the Facebook debacle is leading other social networks around the world to reconsider their own IPOs, with the leading social service in Russia, Vkontakte, which has 119m users, pulling its floatation for the foreseeable future.

Facebook however was said to be in discussions about purchasing the mobile operating system Opera for as much as $1bn, matching the price it paid for photography app, Instagram.

It has also been rumoured recently that Facebook is planning on developing its own phone although details remain thin on the ground.

See below to find out what CEO Zuckerberg has been up to while his company's stock has plummeted.

Mark Zuckerberg's Honeymoon
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(01 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan pictured in Italy as their honeymoon continues (credit:Splash)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(02 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan pictured in Italy as their honeymoon continues (credit:Splash)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(03 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan pictured in Italy as their honeymoon continues (credit:Splash)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(04 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan pictured in Italy as their honeymoon continues (credit:Splash)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(05 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan pictured in Italy as their honeymoon continues (credit:Splash)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(06 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan pictured in Italy as their honeymoon continues (credit:Splash)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(07 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and his new wife Priscilla Chan are on holiday in Italy (credit:WENN)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(08 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and his new wife Priscilla Chan are on holiday in Italy (credit:WENN)
Zuckerberg's Honeymoon(09 of13)
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Mark Zuckerberg and his new wife Priscilla Chan are on holiday in Italy
(10 of13)
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This photo provided by Facebook and released on Tuesday, May 22, 2012, shows Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan at their wedding ceremony in Palo Alto, Calif., Saturday, May 19, 2012. Zuckerberg updated his status to "married" on Saturday. The ceremony took place in Zuckerberg's backyard before fewer than 100 guests, who all thought they were there to celebrate Chan's graduation. (AP Photo/Facebook, Noah Kalina Photography) (credit:AP)
Mark Zuckerberg, Priscilla Chan(11 of13)
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FILE - This May 19, 2012 photo originally provided by Facebook shows Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan at their wedding ceremony in Palo Alto, Calif., Saturday, May 19, 2012. Los Angeles-based designer Claire Pettibone says Priscilla Chan was wearing one of her dresses when she married Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Pettibone wrote on her blog that she didn't know Chan was wearing one of her most popular creations until she saw one of the photos released from Saturday's surprise ceremony. (AP Photo/Facebook, Allyson Magda Photography) (credit:AP)
Mark Zuckerberg, Priscilla Chan(12 of13)
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In this July 9, 2011, file photo, Mark Zuckerberg, president and CEO of Facebook, walks to morning sessions with his girlfriend Priscilla Chan during the 2011 Allen and Co. Sun Valley Conference, in Sun Valley, Idaho. On Saturday, May, 19, 2012, Zuckerberg and Chan tied the knot at a small ceremony at his Palo Alto, Calif., home, capping a busy week for the couple (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson) (credit:AP)
Zuckerberg In China(13 of13)
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Zuckerberg and Chan recently made this apparently random appearance in a documentary about the Chinese police. (credit:AP)