The biggest anticipated IPO of 2011—perhaps even the last 10 years is about to happen. At least that what most people have been saying about Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook.
The company has been teasing investors and the tech space for some time about a possible IPO and the rumours have only grown stronger since Facebook surpassed the 500 shareholder threshold prerequisite for making their financial records public. Facebook effectively has until April 2012 to make those records public, so in effect, it has no choice but to go for an IPO. According to some sources, the ‘Zuckster’ is looking to file the required IPO documents with the SEC before the end of 2011.
Perhaps the biggest question though, is how much the valuation at IPO will be. Presently some experts place a valuation on Facebook of about $80 billion, and many expect the IPO to measure somewhere between $100 billion and $120 billion. The zeros in those figures are certainly enough to make your head spin, but more than that, it makes you wonder if Facebook is really worth that much.
Sure, it has over 800 million active users and could surpass the 1 billion active users mark by the end of 2012. But IPOs are notorious for inflating the value of companies—even Groupon recently at its IPO, had many experts expressing dismay. Still, it’s the investors and the market that will ultimately value Facebook when it goes public. We’ll have to wait and see if the final figure is $120 billion.
Is Facebook worth $120 billion in your opinion? Share your views in the comments below.
Source: http://www.sitetrail.com/2011/11/24/is-facebook-really-worth-120-billion/
The company has been teasing investors and the tech space for some time about a possible IPO and the rumours have only grown stronger since Facebook surpassed the 500 shareholder threshold prerequisite for making their financial records public. Facebook effectively has until April 2012 to make those records public, so in effect, it has no choice but to go for an IPO. According to some sources, the ‘Zuckster’ is looking to file the required IPO documents with the SEC before the end of 2011.
Perhaps the biggest question though, is how much the valuation at IPO will be. Presently some experts place a valuation on Facebook of about $80 billion, and many expect the IPO to measure somewhere between $100 billion and $120 billion. The zeros in those figures are certainly enough to make your head spin, but more than that, it makes you wonder if Facebook is really worth that much.
Sure, it has over 800 million active users and could surpass the 1 billion active users mark by the end of 2012. But IPOs are notorious for inflating the value of companies—even Groupon recently at its IPO, had many experts expressing dismay. Still, it’s the investors and the market that will ultimately value Facebook when it goes public. We’ll have to wait and see if the final figure is $120 billion.
Is Facebook worth $120 billion in your opinion? Share your views in the comments below.
Source: http://www.sitetrail.com/2011/11/24/is-facebook-really-worth-120-billion/