Shares in EssilorLuxottica, the maker of Ray-Ban glasses, soared 14% to an all-time high on Friday, adding nearly $20 billion to its market value amid growing investor enthusiasm for its AI-powered Ray-Ban Meta (META.O) smart glasses.
The Paris-listed company, founded by the late Italian entrepreneur Leonardo Del Vecchio and seen as a potential buyer for fashion house Armani, reported an 11.7% year-on-year rise in third-quarter sales to €6.9 billion ($8.1 billion). The performance exceeded market expectations and marked its best quarterly result ever, fuelled by strong demand for wearable products.
Although smart glasses still represent a small portion of EssilorLuxottica’s revenue, the segment has become a focal point for investors and analysts. CFO Stefano Grassi said AI-powered Ray-Ban Meta glasses contributed more than four percentage points to sales growth, prompting the company to accelerate production capacity ahead of schedule.
Barclays analysts have called smart glasses “the most disruptive innovation since mobile phones,” projecting 60 million units could be sold globally by 2035.
By 1400 GMT, EssilorLuxottica shares were up 13.8% — their biggest daily gain since 2008 — lifting the company’s market capitalization to €126.5 billion. The surge also drove the Stoxx Europe Luxury 10 Index up more than 7% on the week, its strongest performance since January.
The latest Ray-Ban Meta models, priced between $379 and $799, feature built-in displays and are currently sold in select stores, with expansion to Canada, France, Italy, and the UK planned for early 2026. Their popularity has reignited interest in smart eyewear, a category previously abandoned by Google (GOOGL.O) and Microsoft (MSFT.O).
J.P. Morgan analysts described smart glasses as a “material growth driver,” while Equita analysts raised their wearable revenue forecasts, estimating the segment could add about €1 billion to group sales this year.
