The maker of video conferencing software rose 9.7% to US$179.48, giving it a market value of US$50.6 billion, bigger than tractor maker Deere & Co and pharmaceutical company Biogen Inc.

While there was no clear reason for the steep rise, technology stocks were the best performing group in the S&P 500 Index, and investors may be positioning ahead of Zoom’s earnings report expected on Tuesday.

San Jose, California-based Zoom has gained more than 160% this year as investors bet that soaring usage amid the coronavirus pandemic would translate into long-lasting revenue growth.

The stock now trades at an eye-watering 55 times estimated revenue compared with an average of 7 times for software and services stocks in the S&P 500.

Eric Yuan, Zoom’s founder and chief executive officer, saw his net worth rise by more than US$800 million on Friday to US$9.3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.