Surprise: Facebook Stock Up 28% In Past Month, Highest Since July

Today, Facebook shares (NASDAQ:FB) have jumped 5.28 percent, closing at 24.32. In fact, it represents a four-month high for Facebook, as shares have not traded at this level since the first lockup expirations. Last Wednesday, Facebook experienced its biggest lockup expiration. To everyone’s surprise, shares popped more than 10 percent in a few minutes. Today confirms that the worst has passed.

On Friday, October 19, shares were trading at 19.00. In a month’s time, the stock price has jumped exactly 28 percent. Comparatively, NASDAQ has been down 2.62 percent during the same period.

As Josh Constine summed up, investors have been waiting for this for a long time. Now that the lockup expirations are mostly behind us, traders betting on short selling are moving away from Facebook shares. At the same time, investors who believe in Facebook’s long-term vision are buying.

Facebook is committed to building the best social network, one update at a time. It is a company largely driven by the product. Small and big announcements come up every day, such as photo sync for iOS or the roll-out of Facebook Gifts.

When it comes to the stock, Marc Andreessen sold roughly $54 million worth of Facebook shares yesterday. But it was only to cover taxes he owes on his holdings. The majority of his stake is still trading. The fact that big investors are still on board is a good sign.

Yet, the biggest news of all is that a long-anticipated shift is happening — as we learned during Q3 earnings, mobile ads are growing and now represent 14 percent of advertising revenue. It explains the long-term upward trend.