Palo Alto Networks to become Israel’s largest public company, reshaping Tel Aviv Stock Exchange
Analysts say dual listing could lift daily turnover by 15% and overhaul benchmark indices.
The expected arrival of cybersecurity giant Palo Alto Networks on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) is set to position it easily as Israel’s largest public company. Beyond the prestige, the move could inject substantial liquidity into the local market and reshape the structure of Israel’s main equity indices.
The average daily trading volume of Palo Alto shares on Nasdaq ranges between $1 billion and $1.5 billion. Even if only 10% of that activity shifts to Tel Aviv, it would add roughly $125 million a day, an increase of about 15% compared with the current average daily equity turnover on TASE, which stood at NIS 2.5 billion in 2025.
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Palo Alto headquarters (right) and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
(Photos: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg, Orel Cohen)
Against this backdrop, shares of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange jumped 11.5% to a record valuation of NIS 13 billion (approximately $4.2B), reflecting expectations of higher revenues and profits from increased trading activity. Senior exchange executives are also likely to benefit. Under the company’s compensation policy, CEO Ittai Ben-Zeev, Chairman Eugene Kandel, and other managers are eligible for bonuses of up to eight monthly salaries, depending on pre-tax profit, as well as equity awards of up to 30 salaries through options.
Following a 638% surge in the exchange’s share price over the past three years, exercising options has become highly lucrative. At the end of September, executives exercised options worth approximately NIS 72.5 million and sold the shares for a profit of NIS 52 million. The value of CEO Ben-Zeev’s current holdings stands at about NIS 435 million.
“A structural change for the market”
Market participants believe the implications go far beyond a single listing. “Palo Alto’s entry will change the indices, and perhaps bring in additional companies,” said Moshik Yosipovich, head of Israel equities at Migdal Insurance and Finance. Palo Alto, founded by Israeli entrepreneur Nir Zuk, is traded in New York at a valuation of $116 billion and maintains major development operations in Israel.
According to Yosipovich, the move could break a long-standing stalemate around dual listings. “It is possible that more companies will come to register in Israel. Dual registration has been discussed for years in the Israeli capital market, but we haven’t seen results so far, and I think companies may now surprise and do so,” he said. “You do not have a significant cyber company traded here today, certainly not of this size. Israeli cyber firms usually issued abroad or remained private.”
He added that a Palo Alto listing, alongside the possibility of Check Point also trading locally, could open the door to others. “This is more money and liquidity for the local stock exchange. Institutional entities that manage the public’s long-term savings are thirsty for increased turnover, since it allows them to operate more vigorously on the local market.”
Yosipovich believes the impact would extend to the composition of Israel’s benchmark indices. “Palo Alto’s entry, and with it other companies, will change the indices. Large companies will enter the TA-35, and quality companies will move into the TA-90. Suddenly the TA-90 will also become a much more central index.”
Today, he noted, the TA-35 is dominated by real estate, finance, and banks. “A new technological component will enter, and this is good for everyone, for traders, institutional investors, and new investors alike.” Investor behavior is already shifting, he said: “Four years ago investors were focused on the S&P 500; today they are much more interested in Israel. I would not eulogize the U.S. market, but this could change the portfolios and mix of institutional entities, because it will be possible to gain exposure to cyber companies in Israel as well.”
Asked why Palo Alto chose this moment to come to Tel Aviv, Yosipovich was cautious. “That’s an excellent question,” he said. “All Israelis abroad suffer from negative momentum, especially in software. I don’t know whether, in a situation of positive momentum, they would look at Israel.”
