FB stock in toilet

RIGHT BETWEEN THE EYES: Facebook shares hit a new low on Thursday, falling 6.3% to $19.87 as more than 271 million shares—or nearly 13% of those outstanding—became eligible for sale. The stock is down nearly 50% from its May 18 debut. Things have become so dire that Mark Zuckerberg is acknowledging to employees for the first time that the selloff could hurt them, the Wall Street Journal reports. Zuckerberg has long exhorted employees not to pay attention to the stock price, instead pushing them to focus on developing the social network. But in a company-wide meeting earlier this month, he conceded that it may be "painful" to watch as investors continue to retreat from Facebook's stock, according to people familiar with the meeting. The meeting was part of a new effort over recent weeks to buck up morale. Rules that restricted investors from selling their stakes immediately after Facebook's IPO expired for those who sold stock in the offering—but not employees, who are only able to watch at this point. Lockup expirations in October, November and December will allow Zuckerberg and other employees to sell more than 1.4 billion shares. The biggest lockup expiration, freeing more than 1 billion shares, is set for Nov. 14. The last lockup expires next May. For many employees, however, selling shares later this year may not be a palatable option. Facebook's stock has so far fallen about 48% since the IPO, pushing its market capitalization down to about $42.6 billion. (8/17a)