Warren Buffett knows this, and that's why he made his largest ever international investment by purchasing 80% of Israeli metalworks company, Iscar, for $4 billion last year. Buffett said, on his first visit to Israel, that "Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A) and Israel will be here forever, as Israel and the U.S. will be here forever." The Donald (Trump) signed two huge realty deals in Israel last year: a partnership in purchasing a building in Ramat Gan for USD 44 million, and a contract to erect a luxury hotel bearing his name on a sea-side cliff in Netanya.
Israeli companies are hot and many of them are looking for growth internationally. Bloomberg reported this week about international expansion by a few of the leading Israeli conglomerates. The article describes plans by Israeli billionaire Nochi Danker and his firm, IDB, to partner with fellow Israeli investor, Yitzhak Tshuva to invest as much as $8 billion in constructing a Las Vegas casino.
With seven million inhabitants, growth prospects within Israel are certainly less interesting than investing abroad. Investors can look to Israeli firms like Elbit Medical Systems (NASDAQ: EMITF). My colleague Aaron Katsman explains that this company is essentially a holding company for real estate investments in booming India, Central and Eastern Europe and an incubator for two venture-stage biotech companies staged to go public. With over a $1 billion market cap, the sum-of-the-parts of this one may vastly exceed its current valuation.
Elbit Medical and other "Israeli Ingenuity" companies offer investors global diversification and exposure to some hot parts of the world economy.
Investors following on superinvestor Warren Buffett's coattails have almost always done well.
Disclosure: Writer's fund is long EMITF as of 11/2/07.
Zack Miller is the lead equity analyst for America Israel Investment Associates, LLC., the managing editor of IsraelNewsletter.com and a former equity analyst for a leading multinational hedge fund.
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