underwriters

The 404 1,059: Where Facebook fizzles and we're happier for it (podcast)

Last time Jill Schlesinger was here, she advised all our listeners to be patient and wait to see how the Facebook IPO would react to the hype machine leading up to last Friday's open trading. Two weeks later, we hope you listened, or you may have lost some money.

Maybe not as much as Zuckerberg eating $2 billion, but either way you should tune into today's episode as Aunt Jill explains the two debacles that sent Facebook into a downward financial spiral.

Everyone needs an Aunt Jill, right? She'll answer a few of our listeners' questions this … Read more

Who downgraded Facebook's prospects? Maybe Facebook did

Facebook itself may be responsible for investors' tepid response to the social network's stock, which has been tanking since it went public Friday.

Initially, it looks like Morgan Stanley, the lead underwriter on the massive offering, was to blame for allegedly telling major clients it had reduced its revenue forecast for the company, scaring off many big investors in the days leading up to the IPO. But no one knew why Morgan Stanley -- as well as JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs, which also served as major underwriters for the deal -- would revise their estimates so close to … Read more

Did Facebook underwriter spook investors before IPO?

While Facebook's underwriters have been credited with keeping the stock afloat during its first day of trading, a new report suggests that the action of one the company's bankers may have helped sink the social network's much-anticipated offering well before its first trade.

In the days before Facebook's IPO, the lead underwriter for the deal told major clients it was reducing its revenue forecast for the company, according to a Reuters report.

Morgan Stanley's revised forecast so close to the monster IPO came as a huge shock to some, likely contributing to the lackluster performance … Read more