Gili Agmon Boosts Stake in Delek Automotive Amid Share Price Drop

Delek Automotive CEO Gili Agmon has increased his ownership in the company by purchasing an additional 7.6% of its shares for approximately 148 million shekels, raising his total stake from about 49% to 56%. The shares were acquired at 20 shekels each, representing a 25% premium over the current market price. This transaction follows a significant 67% decline in Delek Automotive's share price from its peak, driven by ongoing business challenges.

Earlier in 2024, Agmon also made a tender offer acquiring around 6% of the company’s shares for about 145 million shekels at 23 shekels per share, close to the current price. Both purchases came after notable drops in the stock price, which were influenced by the acquisition of Infinia (Nir Hadera) by the subsidiary Veridis. This acquisition, completed about a year and a half ago, caused Delek Automotive’s valuation to fall by over 50%.

In the first half of 2025, Delek Automotive sold 5,186 new vehicles, a 42% decrease compared to the same period last year. Mazda sales plummeted by 68% to approximately 1,790 units, while Ford sales declined by 8.5% to 555 vehicles. Premium brand BMW sales remained stable at around 1,930 units.

Despite a 1% revenue increase to roughly 3.26 billion shekels in the first half of the year, driven by improved waste management operations and the integration of Eurodrive leasing, the company reported a net loss of about 12.6 million shekels, compared to a 92 million shekel profit the previous year. The second quarter alone saw a larger loss of 88 million shekels, largely due to a significant impairment of 161 million shekels on its investment in the chip company Halo, which is being sold for only tens of millions of dollars after previously being valued at over a billion.

Agmon’s increased investment signals confidence in the company despite recent financial difficulties and market volatility.