Meta in talks to buy 5% stake in Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica: Report

Meta Platforms is in talks to acquire a stake of about 5 per cent in EssilorLuxottica, its production partner for the Ray-Ban smart glasses, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. The stake in the world's largest eyewear company could be worth 4.33 billion euros ($4.73 billion) based on its latest market value of 86.50 billion euros, according to Reuters calculations based on LSEG data. The potential deal could give Meta further control over the roadmap for the smart glasses at a time when tech giants including Apple are investing millions to create cutting-edge gadgets based on augmented- and mixed-reality technologies. EssilorLuxottica's Paris-listed shares jumped 6 per cent after the report, while Meta stock was up 2.3 per cent just after the opening bell.