Facebook: The Stock That Keeps on Dropping

Facebook, you surely know, is now chiefly synonymous with IPO disaster. Brokers and market strategists drop the word alongside “Libor” and “Flash Crash” to explain Mom & Pop’s disenchantment with the market. California says its tax revenue is at risk because of the Silicon Valley company’s stock’s swoon. The social network’s dud IPO has also poked millions of francs of red ink out of UBS, the biggest Swiss bank.

Facebook shares closed down 4 percent Thursday at another all-time low of $20.04, compared with their May initial offering price of $38, amid ongoing fallout from the company’s underwhelming first earnings report as a public company on July 26. The stock has its show-me work cut out for it just a red flags and obstacles keep popping up. On Wednesday, a couple of senior Facebook executives—Katie Mitic, former director of platform marketing, and Ethan Beard, head of platform partnerships—said they’re leaving to pursue other opportunities. In June, the company’s chief technology officer, Bret Taylor, announced his departure. Facebook’s operating margin and sales growth have both declined. And the number of ads it delivered in the U.S. fell 2 percent last quarter even its daily user count jumped 10 percent, management revealed on last week’s call.