Shares of EssilorLuxottica (ESLX.PA) jumped nearly 14% to a record high on Friday after the company’s AI-powered Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses sparked renewed excitement among investors, adding almost $20 billion to its market value.
The eyewear maker, which posted its best-ever quarterly sales performance, reported 11.7% year-on-year revenue growth to €6.9 billion ($8.1 billion) in the third quarter, exceeding forecasts. The company credited the strong results to soaring demand for wearable AI products.
Chief Financial Officer Stefano Grassi said the Ray-Ban Meta models contributed over four percentage points to quarterly growth, as EssilorLuxottica accelerated production capacity to meet rising demand.
The latest Ray-Ban Meta lineup, developed in partnership with Meta Platforms (META.O) and priced between $379 and $799, includes a new flagship model with an AI-powered display. Expansion to Canada, France, Italy, and Britain is planned for 2026.
The rally pushed EssilorLuxottica’s market capitalization to €126.5 billion, marking its biggest single-day gain since 2008, and helped lift the Stoxx Europe Luxury 10 index by over 7% for the week.
Analysts at Barclays forecast that smart glasses could reach 60 million global unit sales by 2035, calling them the most disruptive innovation since the smartphone. J.P. Morgan described the category as a “material growth driver,” while Equita raised its wearable revenue forecast to about €1 billion for this year.
