Meta Gains as KeyBanc Sees Strong Holiday Sales for Oculus Headset

(Bloomberg) -- Meta Platforms Inc. shares rose on Monday, with the Facebook parent company leading an advance among big-cap technology and internet stocks amid signs of strong demand for its Oculus virtual reality headset during the holiday season.

The stock gained 3.3% and closed at its highest level since Nov. 15. U.S. stocks were broadly higher on Monday, with tech names among the leaders, and Meta got a boost after KeyBanc Capital Markets wrote that Oculus was likely a popular gift over the holiday season. The firm cited the rankings of the Oculus app in Apple Inc.’s app store, which “suggest a solid Christmas selling season.”

In a Dec. 26 note, analyst Justin Patterson wrote that Oculus was “a top 5 entertainment app in five countries and a top 10 overall app in the U.S.” on Christmas Eve, and that the ranking “was even greater on Christmas Day,” as it was the #1 overall app in the U.S.

Meta shares are up almost 13% off a low hit earlier this month, although they nearly 10% below a September peak. Among other megacap tech stocks, Apple rose 2.3% to close at a record on Monday, while Microsoft Corp. gained 2.3% and Alphabet Inc. rose 0.7%. Nvidia climbed 4.4%.

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