Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) saw its stock close at $741.25 on Monday, a gain of 11.34%, even after Amazon blocked the company's Muse shopping agent from operating on Amazon.com. The rally added roughly $190 billion to Meta's market value, based on approximately 2.52 billion diluted shares outstanding.
Trading volume was 48.25 million shares, about 75% higher than Friday's 27.60 million. The stock continued to climb after hours, reaching $745.50, up another 0.57%, according to Investing.com. The session high was $753.00, a 9.11% increase from Friday's close of $665.75.
The surge came despite Amazon's decision to restrict Meta's Muse agent from its retail site. Amazon stated that outside purchasing applications should operate openly and respect each provider's choice to participate, according to Axios. The block removes the largest U.S. online retailer from a key Muse use case and tests Meta's ability to monetize an agent across platforms it does not control.
Analyst sentiment played a role in the rally. Wells Fargo's Ken Gawrelski raised his price target to $796 from $640, maintaining an Overweight rating, as reported by The Fly. Gawrelski pointed to early Muse traction, citing Sensor Tower data showing 264,000 U.S. downloads on September 19 and 448,000 daily users a day earlier. Other analysts are also bullish: BofA's Justin Post has a Buy rating and $810 target, Citi's Ronald Josey has a Buy with an $800 target, while Wedbush's Ygal Arounian maintains a Hold with a $650 target.
Muse, launched on September 8, includes shopping, travel, and email tools. Its checkout feature uses Stripe's Link, with Shop Pay and 1Password support planned. However, Muse remains a small part of Meta's business, which is still dominated by advertising. In the second quarter, advertising generated $59.36 billion, or 97.6% of total revenue of $60.80 billion, up 28% year-over-year. Operating income fell 8% to $18.78 billion, and free cash flow plunged 91% to $784 million as capital spending reached $31.08 billion.
The company's heavy investment in AI and infrastructure is pressuring cash returns. Meta plans $130 billion to $145 billion in capital spending for 2026, which could keep free cash flow under pressure. The stock's rally appears to price in rapid Muse adoption before Meta has disclosed any revenue or retention metrics.
Investors now look ahead to Meta Connect on September 23, which could provide the next usage-data test. They will be watching for a Muse usage metric, a plan to address retailer access, and evidence that subscriptions can offset rising infrastructure costs. Additional retailer blocks could limit Muse's utility and weigh on the stock.
