Why Meta Platforms Stock Triumphed on Thursday

What happened

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) stock had a good Thursday, with its more than 2% price gain topping the S&P 500 index's 0.6% rise. Investors were encouraged by the company's pronouncements during its annual Meta Connect developers conference.

So what

The conference, a two-day event that concluded on Thursday, saw Meta Platforms introduce several new pieces of hardware and some fresh artificial intelligence (AI) offerings.

Headlining the social media company's first-look gear was its latest virtual reality (VR) headset, Meta Quest 3. As usual, with a new VR headset, the Meta Quest 3 boasts higher resolution and crisper graphics than its predecessor, among other features. It retails for $500, which includes a six-month subscription to the Quest+ VR service.

Meta Platforms also took the wraps off a set of Ray-Ban smart glasses. Styled in the fashion of the eyewear brand's classic Wayfarer line, the product includes a 12-megapixel camera in its feature set. The price starts at $299.

Perhaps most enticingly, Meta Platforms detailed its upcoming AI capabilities. Chief among these is a virtual assistant known as Meta AI, which, like other such products, will help users with a wide range of activities such as research and travel. Complementing this is another new service, AI Studio, which the company said can help businesses "create AIs that reflect their brand's values and improve customer service experiences."

Now what

The post-Meta Connect buzz was generally favorable for Meta Platforms. Crucially for the company's stock, those impressed folk included analysts.

One positive response came from UBS's Lloyd Walmsley, who wrote in a new research note that he was "positively surprised by the level of innovation going on at Meta, the series of products likely to boost engagement, and a clear path to medium-term monetization potential of [generative] AI products."

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Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Eric Volkman has positions in Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.