Fidelity Sells $350 Million Stake in Israeli Camera Firm Next Vision

Investment giant Fidelity sold approximately 65% of its stake in Next Vision, a manufacturer of stabilized cameras, in a transaction valued at 1.3 billion shekels (about $350 million). The sale involved 5.7 million shares, transacted at roughly 227 shekels per share, a 7% discount from the stock's closing price on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Prior to the sale, Fidelity held a 9.5% stake in Next Vision, worth 2.1 billion shekels, and will now hold about 4%.

Seventy-seven percent of the shares were purchased by foreign investors, including institutional investors from the UK and the US, alongside smaller buyers. An Israeli institutional investor acquired the remaining shares. A market source familiar with the deal described the sale as "technical," attributing it to a specific fund within Fidelity that was required to divest its holdings below a certain value due to an increase in its assets under management, regardless of the company's performance.

Next Vision's chairman, Chen Golan, stated that the sale was unexpected but does not reflect any fundamental change in the company's operations. He expressed satisfaction with the increased foreign investor base resulting from the sale and noted strong demand for the company's products. Golan anticipates a strong year, with the company beginning to build its order backlog for 2027.

Fidelity initially invested in Next Vision about 18 months ago, acquiring shares for nearly 200 million shekels in March 2025 at 88.5 shekels per share, yielding a 170% profit. The firm subsequently increased its holdings through market purchases and a significant investment of $200 million in September of the previous year. This recent sale follows earlier divestments by Next Vision's founders, who sold shares worth hundreds of millions of shekels to Harel Insurance and later sold another block for $200 million at a higher price.