Facebook boosts number of shares on offer by 25%

The move comes one day after the social networking giant said it would raise the price of the shares by 21% to between $34-$38 a share.

It also comes despite doubts about the site's profitability site, which is largely used for social updates.

However, rival Ford said it would continue its social media strategy. A spokesman said: "You just can't buy your way into Facebook. You need to have a credible presence and be doing innovative things."
Facebook will add about 84 million shares to its initial public share offering (IPO) and will now sell about 421 million shares, up from 337 million, raising $18bn (£11.3bn).

This is still only a small percentage of the entire company, and implies Facebook's full market value is well above $100bn.

The extra allotment of shares and the raising of the target price were both moves that were anticipated by analysts.

Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Patcher, said: "No rational person thought they were buying the stock for $28."

He said that Facebook had traded as high as $44 in the secondary markets in recent months.
The actual price of the shares is expected to be revealed on Thursday with open market trading pencilled in to begin on Friday.

If all the shares are sold at the new higher price, the IPO would be the third-largest initial share sale in US history, after the financial giant Visa and General Motors.

The company could add even more shares to the sale as there are more than 60 million additional shares that could be sold to cover excess demand. Continue Reading