Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) director and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen disclosed in an SEC filing yesterday that he has sold over 2.3 million Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) shares at prices ranging between $22.85 and $23.83, for a total of $54.1 million. He said his only purpose of selling Facebook shares was to cover tax obligations that he incurred from the recent settlement of restricted stock units.
Another Facebook insider to get rid of Facebook shares after the expiration of trading restrictions is Donald Graham. He is the chief executive of Washington Post Co., and a director at Facebook. Donald sold $6.7 million worth of Facebook shares, according to a regulatory filing Tuesday.
In a separate filing, Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) noted that both the directors sold company shares to meet tax obligations. They have a strong belief in the company’s long-term future, and there was no other reason for selling shares.
The world’s largest social networking site is the only American company to debut at $100 billion. But its share prices have tumbled since the botched initial public offering in May of this year, amid concerns over the company’s ability to generate money from mobile advertising. Though the company’s shares have jumped about 20 percent since November 20 to $23.10, they still remain below their $38 IPO price.
In another deal, Interpublic Group of Companies (IPG) sold its remaining stake in Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) for $95 million. IPG said its investment in Facebook, made in 2006, no longer makes strategic sense. Interpublic CEO Michael Roth said in a statement that IPG’s investment has increased significantly over the last six years. Bloomberg News reported in July that a former IPG executive sued the company. Ex-IPG executive Ray Volpe demanded $381 million in cash for his alleged role in IPG’s gains generated from the sale of Facebook stock.
Many Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) executives have sold company shares after the lock-up restrictions expired recently. Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg dumped shares worth $15 million in recent weeks. General counsel Theodore Ullyot sold Facebook shares worth $3.13 million. David Spillane, chief accounting officer at Facebook, sold company shares worth $5.4 million a couple of weeks ago.
