Analysts from Wall Street investment banks generally welcomed Meta's progress in AI-powered wearable devices.
On Wednesday, during the 'Connect 2025' event, $Meta Platforms (META.US)$ Meta Platforms unveiled several new smart glasses products, including the Ray-Ban Display smart glasses with a built-in display, the Oakley Meta Vanguard smart glasses for athletes, and the next-generation Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. The company is committed to developing a new generation of augmented reality (AR) smart glasses equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, further expanding its AI hardware product lineup.
Among these, the most anticipated is the Meta Ray-Ban Display, priced at $799 and set to officially launch on September 30. The new smart glasses with an embedded display will come with a wristband that allows users to control the glasses through gestures. Although the AI glasses showcased at the event had minor flaws, the initial public reaction to the product has been generally positive. This is because the demonstration proved Zuckerberg's long-standing belief that glasses will play a significant role in the future development of personal computing and social interaction.
Regarding Zuckerberg’s keynote speech at 'Connect 2025,' Wall Street investment bank analysts have expressed overall optimism about Meta’s progress in AI wearable devices.
Wedbush reiterated its 'Outperform' rating with a target price of $920.
Wedbush stated: 'The event showcased new product releases covering AR/VR hardware as well as enhanced AI capabilities. Notably, the event launched Meta's display glasses, the company's first consumer product to integrate AR and AI into a single device using this form factor. We believe Meta has made encouraging progress on its AI product roadmap, and the investment in Reality Labs indicates a clear path toward the next generation of consumer-facing products and services.'
Morgan Stanley reiterated its 'Overweight' rating with a target price of $850.
Morgan Stanley noted: 'With this information, we recognize the importance of a strategy to comprehensively cover the next generation of computing platforms. With self-developed hardware, an AI-based operating system, and premium content available to users at launch, we believe Meta possesses all the necessary elements to seize this opportunity.'
JPMorgan reiterated its 'Overweight' rating with a target price of $875.
JPMorgan added: 'META Connect showcased the company's progress in AI, and we remain optimistic about commercial opportunities in the AI field, including advertising, engagement, enterprise messaging, MetaAI, and AI devices. META Connect highlighted META's ambition and progress in shaping the next generation of computing, while also reminding us that Meta has already invested billions of dollars in AI and the metaverse.'
Truist Securities reiterated a 'Buy' rating with a target price of $880.
The firm stated: 'Given that the newly launched wearable devices will help strengthen Meta’s still-developing but already AI-enabled hardware and software ecosystem, we are optimistic about the company’s long-term growth prospects. Although this area is currently small in scale, it holds tremendous potential. We believe... the investment in wearables underscores Meta's ambition to make smart glasses the next significant computing platform and, over time, integrate AI devices with Meta AI and other services. Despite the low penetration rate of smart glasses, their growth rate is extremely rapid.'
Stifel reiterated a 'Buy' rating with a target price of $900.
Stifel commented: 'We watched the keynote speech at Meta Connect’s annual conference, where Zuck focused on Meta’s new generation of AI glasses... The Meta Ray-Ban Display, priced at $799, offers a very accessible price point for the technology included (despite some issues during live demos).'
Bank of America Securities maintained a 'Buy' rating with a target price of $900.
Bank of America analysts who tested the Display glasses found them fully functional, non-intrusive to vision, and featuring intuitive navigation. The company remains optimistic that AR glasses will become the leading device in the AI era. Despite this positive outlook, Bank of America noted that $800 AR glasses may be premature for the mass market due to limited style options, price points, and battery life. Nevertheless, they expect strong holiday sales for the more affordable Ray-Ban Gen 2 glasses.
Editor/Doris
