Facebook Files For IPO, Financial Data Revealed

As expected, Facebook has applied to the Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering (IPO) on the stock market. Facebook can therefore be expected to float in the next two or three months. The filing has in turn revealed previously unpublished financial data about the company.

Analysts have long speculated over Facebook's revenues, but data disclosed in the firm's IPO filing gives the clearest picture yet of the firm's financial health. According to the filing, revenue from 2011 totalled $3.71 billion, 88% up on 2010, and net profits reached $1 billion. A large part of the company's revenue—$3.15 billion—came from advertising, and the firm registered $3.9 billion of available cash. Over the course of 2011, Facebook used 10% of its revenue to fund R&D—that's $388 million.

According to Facebook, the site now has 845 million users worldwide, 483 million of whom use the site every day. Users post an average of 2.7 billion comments or 'likes' per day.

The figures make for impressive, if not eye-watering reading, as does Mark Zuckerberg's $500,000 salary, although this is due to drop to a symbolic $1 from 2013. Mark Zuckerberg is also the firm's main shareholder, with a 28.2% stake in the company.



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