CyberArk’s $25B exit enriches global funds, not Israelis
BlackRock, Thoma Bravo among big winners; Clal Insurance is the local outlier.
The sale of CyberArk to Palo Alto Networks for $25 billion marks a major payday for the company’s largest shareholders, including investment giants BlackRock, Fidelity, Wellington Management, and the private equity firm Thoma Bravo. But notably absent from the celebration are most of Israel’s institutional investors.
A Calcalist investigation reveals that Israeli institutional investment in CyberArk totals just $214 million, relatively modest compared to the company’s $21.5 billion valuation on Nasdaq. In other words, local institutional investors hold less than 1% of the company’s shares.
Clal Insurance is the only Israeli institution with a significant stake, currently holding $172 million worth of CyberArk shares. According to the firm’s disclosures, it held $85 million in shares at the end of Q3 2024, suggesting that its position has more than doubled in the months since.
“We first invested in CyberArk a year ago and significantly increased our position over the past six months,” said Uri Bartov, head of equities at Clal Insurance. “We recognized CyberArk as a global leader in its cybersecurity niche.”
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Bartov noted that Clal’s investment decision was made after an in-depth review of CyberArk’s business and that its acquisition of Venafi last year played a key role. “CyberArk’s purchase of Venafi, which focuses on machine-to-machine cybersecurity, was particularly significant. This kind of protection will be crucial as digital agents increasingly interact autonomously,” he said.
In addition to Clal, Meitav and Migdal together hold around $16 million in CyberArk shares, while the Teachers and Kindergarten Education Fund holds about $10 million.
