It didn't take long for critics to start poking Facebook -- and not in that way.
The social networking website wants to raise how much? Mark Zuckerberg -- that pompous nerd from that David Fincher movie -- wants to own how much of the company? This dot-com bubble will pop how soon after the IPO?
I don't think Facebook is a bargain if it winds up pricing anywhere near the levels that some are speculating. However, I can already see the vast majority of analysts and market watchers betting against the company.
If the masses are predicting Facebook's demise as a public company, history says that the better bet is backing the pompous nerd from that David Fincher movie.
Zuck it
Yesterday's S-1 filing shows a company that is growing quickly, flush with cash, and profitable with insanely ludicrous margins. This isn't a company that has to go public because it needs the money.
Our own Tom Gardner hit Twitter with this bullish note after the filing:
As a cash-rich private co, #Facebook pursued market share. Now earnings will accelerate. Don't lazily accept jokes about the IPO valuation.
I'm glad I'm not alone, even if Tom and I may be in the minority even among our Motley Fool colleagues.
I was one with the masses before. I was skeptical when Microsoft
I was wrong. I underestimated that a growing company renders overvaluation arguments moot over time.
Wearing military fatigues
Over the next few days, you're going to hear about something called "Facebook fatigue" as a sign that the site is peaking. Some widely followed blogger or analyst will grow tired of Facebook, delete the account, and assume that everyone's going to be following suit.
Let me tell you all what you need to know about this malady. The term "Facebook fatigue" dates back to 2007, when BusinessWeek tagged it as one of the 10 likely events to happen in 2008. You realize that Facebook had just 60 million users at the time -- just 7% of today's base of 845 million monthly active users.
Obviously Facebook can't have a similar 15-fold pop in users over the next five years. There just aren't that many people on the planet! Registration growth will decelerate. However, there's nothing stopping Facebook from milking more revenue out of the users it already has.
There's advertising, of course, where Facebook's 28% chunk of the display advertising market is nearly three times as large as its nearest peer. Slapping graphical ads on a website hasn't been an ideal dot-com model in the past, but sponsors are gravitating to what it means on Facebook. Advertisers paid 18% more for an ad on Facebook in 2011 than they did in 2010. Google's
New revenue stream worth paddling
One of the more surprising nuggets in Facebook's report is that it generates 12% of its revenue from Zynga
If Zynga can become such a major contributor to Facebook's fat margins, what happens when there are more Zyngas? Electronic Arts
Why stop at gaming? As more developers flock to Facebook's platform, there will be an army of Zyngas contributing to Facebook's bottom line.
The cruel law of gravity
It would be naive -- and stupid, quite frankly -- to argue that Facebook will grow in perpetuity. There will come a point where it does peak. Facebook may test the mettle of its users one time too many. A uniquely superior way to connect to acquaintances may come around, even if it will take ages to replace Facebook's 100 billion (and counting) friend connections.
Facebook is a stock that you don't want to overpay for now -- and you're not going to want to hold it forever. However, can't the same be said about any company? If you're going to live in fear of the peak, you will miss the ride up. All you have to do is pay attention. Respect the peak. Enjoy the ride.
