Tel Aviv Stock Exchange Closes Lower as OPKO Health Surges 25%
The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange closed lower on Thursday as OPKO Health surged 25.64% following a major asset sale to Labcorp. Investors await the September CPI data and November index updates.
Tel Aviv Stock Exchange Closes Lower as Opko Health Surges
The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange wrapped up Thursday's trading session with minor declines across its major indices. At the close, the TA-125 index dropped by 0.07% to 4,022.23 points, while the TA-35 index slipped 0.15% to 4,156.68 points.
Leading the day's gainers was OPKO Health, which skyrocketed by an unprecedented 25.64% to close at 512 agorot following news of a major asset sale. Electra Real Estate followed in second place with a 25.30% surge to 2,080 agorot, while Elbit Systems rose 5.35% to 228,500 agorot.
Major Movers and Market Indices Update
On the losing side, Tower Semiconductor suffered the steepest drop, plunging 7.61% to 62,440 agorot. Camtek followed with a 6.50% loss down to 38,530 agorot, and Meshhek Energy dropped 5.51% to 958.1 agorot.
Thursday marked the record date for the upcoming stock index composition update ahead of November. The exchange is scheduled to publish the new index compositions on October 29, a move expected to impact passive funds and ETFs required to rebalance their holdings.
Inflation Outlook and OPKO Health Deal
Meanwhile, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September is set to be released, with economists forecasting a monthly decline of about 0.3%, driven largely by seasonal drops in transportation and flight prices. However, the annual inflation rate is projected to climb to roughly 1.8%, compared to 1.5% in August, due to base effects.
In corporate news, OPKO Health announced an agreement to sell selected assets of its wholly-owned subsidiary, BioReference Health, to laboratory giant Labcorp for $722 million in cash at closing, plus up to $150 million in contingent consideration based on 4Kscore test revenues.
