MILAN, July 25 (Reuters) - The head of eyewear company

EssilorLuxottica said Meta had informed him

that it might take a stake in the company, adding on Thursday

that he would welcome such a step.

The comments from CEO Francesco Milleri follow media reports

last week that Meta could invest in the Ray-Ban maker. The Wall

Street Journal said the two companies had discussed Meta taking

a 5% stake in the Franco-Italian group.

"We are informed of this kind of intention," Milleri

told analysts in an earnings call, adding that such interest was

welcome.

"We are proud that the company that know us very well now

after years of partnership is convinced that our company, our

group, can grow," Milleri said.

"We have no plan for a capital increase dedicated to Meta,"

he added, saying any share purchase would have to be made on the

market. EssilorLuxottica has a market capitalisation of around

88 billion euros ($95 billion), according to LSEG data.

The two groups already have a partnership for smart glasses

and Milleri said the relationship was really strong and it

would be a long-term one.

Milleri said earlier in July that the new generation of

Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses had sold more in a few months than

the old ones did in two years. The smart glasses went on the

market last October, allowing users to livestream directly from

them to followers on Facebook and Instagram.

($1 = 0.9221 euros)