Former Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen Opts Out of Aerodrom Stake
Former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen, along with Barak Rosen and Assi Tochmajer, will not exercise an option to acquire shares in Aerodrom, a company that develops drones and aerial services. The option, granted to Rosen by the new controlling shareholder Ronen Elad, allowed for the purchase of approximately 22.2 million shares at 80 agorot each, with the possibility of assigning parts to Tochmajer and Cohen. The 120-day exercise period has expired without the option being taken up.
When the option was granted in March, Aerodrom's stock was trading around 5.85 shekels, making the 80 agorot exercise price appear highly attractive. At that time, exercising the option would have cost about 17.8 million shekels, while the market value of those shares was nearly 130 million shekels, a paper gain of over 110 million shekels. However, the stock has since plummeted by about 84%, now trading around 91 agorot. While the current market price is still slightly above the exercise price, the significant potential profit envisioned in March has largely evaporated, with the paper gain on the full option amount now only around 2.5 million shekels.
Aerodrom's business performance has also lagged behind market expectations. In the first half of the year, revenues were approximately 3 million shekels, down from 6.1 million shekels in the same period last year. The company incurred a gross loss of 323,000 shekels, an operating loss of about 7.5 million shekels, and a net loss of roughly 7.6 million shekels, while burning through 8.7 million shekels in operating activities. This is a stark contrast to earlier company projections of reaching $16 million in revenue for 2026.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Defense is demanding approximately 30 million shekels from Aerodrom in contractual penalties related to a tender, threatening legal action. Aerodrom disputes these claims, but the situation represents an additional risk for the company, whose current market capitalization is about 153 million shekels. Despite these challenges and the stock's significant decline from its peak, Aerodrom's share price has still risen 250% since the beginning of the year, reflecting new investment and a change in control under Ronen Elad.
