Microsoft probably won’t sell its nearly $600M stake in Facebook, source says

Facebook’s stock has lost 43 percent of its value since the company’s May 17 IPO, but despite the social network’s downward trajectory, an insider told Bloomberg Friday that stakeholder Microsoft probably won’t sell its 1.7 percent slice after a ban on share sales expires next week.

Microsoft, the largest software maker, views the stake as a strategic investment reflecting the pair’s aim to combat Google Inc., rather than as a near-term moneymaker…

As of market close on Friday, Microsoft’s 26.2 million shares of Facebook were worth a combined $571.9 million.