Facebook Inc. is inching closer to an initial public offering that it hopes will value the company at more than $100 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
The social-networking firm is targeting a time frame of April to June for an initial public offering, said people familiar with the matter. The company is exploring raising $10 billion in its IPO — which would be one of the largest offerings ever—in a deal that might assign Facebook a $100 billion valuation, a number greater than twice that of such stalwarts as Hewlett-Packard Co. and 3M Co.
A Facebook IPO has been hotly anticipated for several years and viewed as a defining moment for the latest Web-investing boom. The company has been vague about whether it would even make such an offering and silent on timing of an IPO.
“We’re not going to participate in speculation about an IPO,” said Facebook spokesman Larry Yu.
The company now appears poised to go ahead with a deal. But the IPO would likely come to market at a time when investors are beginning to question the value of some newer Internet businesses.
The most recent IPO, an $805 million float of discount- deal service Groupon Inc. on Nov. 3, has plummeted 42 percent in price in the past five trading days after surging in its first day of trading. Business-networking service LinkedIn Corp., whose stock more than doubled from its IPO price on its first day of trading May 19, has since fallen 36 percent but remains 33 percent above its IPO.
