Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg?s Hoodie Peeves Wall St. Veteran

Mark Zuckerberg's appearance in the kickoff to Facebook's IPO roadshow this week was generally seen as a success, except for one tiny detail: Some Wall Street veterans thought that Zuckerberg's attire -- his trademark hoodie and jeans -- was an abomination.

Michael Pachter, analyst for Wedbush Securities, lambasted Zuckberger during a Bloomberg TV interview. Mark and his signature hoodie: He's actually showing investors he doesn't care that much; he's going to be him, Pachter said. I think that's a mark of immaturity. I think that he has to realize he's bringing investors in as a new constituency right now, and I think he's got to show them the respect that they deserve because he's asking them for their money.

Facebook declined to respond to the controversy surrounding Zuckerberg's trademark wardrobe.

Pachter said that he believes Zuckerberg is is well-suited to be the chief product officer, the chief user-experience officer, to manage the design of the user interface, to decide every feature that goes in. Ultimately, though, Pachter does not believe that Zuckerberg is fit to run a corporation and have to answer to shareholders.

Despite his criticisms, Pachter said that thinks Facebook is a good investment and that he has nothing against people that wear hoodies. His only problem with Zuckerberg's hoodie was the  context in which Zuckerberg wore it. I wear a hoodie all the time and am a flip-flops/t-shirt/shorts kind of guy, Pachter wrote to Talking Points Memo. I personally could care less what Mr. Zuckerberg wears and when he wears it.

In his interview with TPM, Pachter elaborated on the idea he was trying to convey during his segment on Bloomberg TV: I believe that if he cared to show them that he respects their views and will serve their interests, he would show respect by dressing appropriately for the event, he said. I never said he should wear a suit, but said that he should lose the hoodie and show some respect. That means jacket/t-shirt/jeans.

The criticisms of Zuckerberg's attire didn't bode well with many in the tech community. The Next Web directly challenged Pachter in an article called Odd analyst mocks Zuck's hoodie, ironically sounding stupid in a suit while doing so, where writer Alex Wilhelm says, Oh, boo. Investment banks fought to get Facebook's IPO business, and a flag of the company is flying on Wall Street. The only person showing disrespect here is Pachter, because he apparently has no idea what he is talking about.

Similarly, technology blogger Om Malik criticized Pachter's out-of-touch remarks in an article called Idiots & Their Zuck's Hoodie Theory. He succinctly wrote, Now if you were looking for a problem with Zuckerberg's hoodie, then you should see it for what it really is: a fashion abomination.

Facebook is likely to be traded on the public market before the end of the month, but a specific date hasn't been set in stone at this moment. Facebook will sell 337,415,352 shares to raise $13.6 billion according to SEC documents. It's expected to be valued between $77 billion to $96 billion.