The 'cheap' airline stock that beat world peers with a 350% rally
The stock has increased four-fold in the past year to outperform every one of its global peers. Psagot Investment House Ltd., Israel’s largest money manager, says the shares may rise at least a further 50 per cent as Israelis take advantage of their increased purchasing power. The number of people taking trips abroad has risen 15 per cent so far this year, according to the Jerusalem-based Central Bureau of Statistics.
El Al “finds itself in an excellent financial position,” Noam Pincu, a Tel Aviv-based Psagot analyst with a buy rating on the “very cheap” stock, said in a note. “The company has an advantage in that it’s Israel’s leading airline, and in our assessment, the Israeli market is expected to grow faster relative to the world.”
It has since settled a labour dispute, upgraded its fleet with nine Boeing Co. Dreamliners
and plans to fit jets with an anti-missile laser platform to bolster its reputation as one of the world’s safest airlines. No El Al plane has been hijacked since 1968. Even with increased competition, the carrier has managed to maintain a 30-per-cent share of Ben Gurion airport’s passenger travel, according to El Al’s financial reports.
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