Ithaca, controlled by Yitzhak Tshuva, enters the prestigious London stock index
The oil and gas production company, controlled by Delek Group, is set to enter the FTSE 100 index in September. The inclusion is expected to generate demand for shares worth hundreds of millions of shekels.
Ithaca, whose largest shareholder is Delek Group, controlled by Yitzhak Tshuva, is expected to enter the flagship London FTSE 100 index in September. Ithaca is engaged in the exploration, production, and sale of oil and gas in the North Sea region, and although it is not officially an Israeli company, it remains one of the few companies under Israeli ownership to enter the prestigious index. The company trades in London with a market capitalization of about 4.5 billion pounds (about 18 billion shekels), after the surge in oil prices in the shadow of the war in Iran led to a rally of over 61% in the stock since the beginning of the year.
How much is entry into the index worth and the analyst predicting a surge
In fact, since the low it entered in 2024, Ithaca's stock has jumped by 181%, and has climbed by about 61% since the beginning of the year. Ithaca was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in November 2022 at a valuation of 2.5 billion pounds. The IPO was based on a secondary offering by Delek Group to investors. Now, the entry into the London index may give the stock an additional push. The meaning of Ithaca's entry into the index is demand estimated at about 2% of the company's market value, that is, about 90 million pounds, which is over 360 million shekels. This involves passive demand from ETFs that track the index and will need to buy Ithaca shares for tracking purposes.
Beyond that, it is reasonable to assume that the entry into the index will lead to more liquidity in the stock and more interest in it, also from other analysts. As of today, one of the banks covering the stock is Jefferies, and analyst Mark Wilson from the bank recommends it with a "buy" rating at a target price of 350 pence, a premium of 29.6% over the current price in London. After the financial reports published last week, the analyst wrote that the results are strong with record production (a trend that continues in the current quarter), dividend increases, and net debt reduction. According to the analyst, the central statement at the company's conference call was that of Chairman Yaniv Friedman, who said that there are currently four major players in the region and it is likely that this will be the case in the future.
Yielding a huge dividend for Delek Group
In the first half of the year, the company recorded an adjusted EBITDAX (profit excluding interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, and exploration expenses) that was similar to the results of the corresponding period in 2025 and amounted to 1.1 billion dollars. Cash flow from operating activities amounted to 955 million dollars, a decrease of 5% from the corresponding period. The company moved from a loss to a profit of 127 million dollars, although the results of the corresponding period in 2025 were affected by a one-time tax charge. The adjusted net profit was similar in both periods, about 128 million dollars. The company's management reaffirmed its commitment to a dividend distribution policy of 30% of free cash flow from operating activities after taxes and raised the annual forecast for annual dividend distribution to 500-530 million dollars, with a distribution of 255 million dollars of it announced with the publication of the reports. Delek Group's share in the distribution is 129 million dollars.
In the last investor call held by Delek Group, which holds 50.05% of Ithaca through a chain of ownership, the group's CEO Idan Wallace emphasized Ithaca's EBITDAX figure and said that it is "of course a result of the increase in production and prices". Wallace also referred to the production rate at Ithaca, which grew by 9% in the second quarter compared to the corresponding quarter. Yaniv Friedman was asked in the same call about mergers and acquisitions and replied that the company is interested in continuing to grow outside of the UK as well, saying "We are looking at a great many opportunities and a great many deals, we want to do the right deal and not just do a deal". Ithaca acquired ENI UK last year.
The FTSE 100 index is operated by FTSE Russell, a subsidiary of the London Stock Exchange (LSEG), which also operates the Russell indices in the US. Alongside Ithaca, the airline Easyjet will also be added to the FTSE 100 index.
