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NEW YORK – Shares of Groupon Inc fell for a third day on Wednesday, sinking below the company’s initial public offering price of US$20 less than three weeks after the daily deal company went public.

Groupon’s shares fell 14.8% to US$17.11 on Nasdaq, bringing its decline over the last three days to about 34%.

Groupon raised more than US$700-million in an IPO in early November, making it the biggest IPO by a U.S. Internet company since Google Inc raised US$1.7-billion in 2004.

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Analysts have cited concerns about increased competition. LivingSocial, Groupon’s closest rival, which is part owned by Amazon.com Inc, announced plans on Monday to offer more than 20 deals with national merchants over the crucial Black Friday shopping period.

Daily deal companies often subsidize national deals, making them less profitable than offers run with local merchants. The national deals usually bring in lots of new customers, but put pressure on profit margins.

© Thomson Reuters 2011