Market Report Formula Sinks on Mixed TASE

Tel Aviv stocks ended the week's last session mixed, but they lost some ground over the week.

The TA-25 index dropped 0.1 percent to 673.9 points yesterday, but retreated by 0.3 percent over the week. The TA-100 index dropped 0.1 percent to 692.4 and the Tel-Tech-15 index rose 0.3 percent. Turnover was moderate at NIS 600 million.

The bond market was fairly dull: Shahars lost 0.1 percent and Galils gained up to 0.1 percent. Moving on to currencies, the dollar weakened by 0.25 percent against the shekel to 4.361.

Bank Hapoalim (TASE: POLI) stood out with a 1.1 percent loss on heavy turnover, despite announcing record net profit of NIS 926 million for the first quarter of this year, and a cash dividend of NIS 528 million. Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI) ended unchanged.

Teva (TASE, Nasdaq: TEVA) announced on Wednesday that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had given final approval for its generic version of Clarithromycin extended release tablets in 500 mg form, which are its copycat version of Abbott's macrolide antibiotic Biaxin. The brand product has annual sales of $284 million, Teva said. On Monday, the drug giant said it received the okay for its generic version of an $800 million a year anti-cholesterol drug. Teva stock rose 0.3 percent; it is now only 6 percent below its peak of a year ago.

Makhteshim Agan Industries (TASE: MAIN) lost 4.5 percent in the last week. It recovered some of that ground yesterday, rising 1.5 percent.

Israel Chemicals (TASE: CHIM) retreated by 0.1 percent.

Turnover in Formula Systems (TASE: FORT, Nasdaq: FORTY) was a huge NIS 30 million, seven times the average, but the stock lost 6.3 percent. Yesterday was the ex-date entitling stockholders to a share of a cash dividend.

Oil is in the air and Lapidoth Heletz participation units rose 7.3 percent after the company announced a commercial amount of crude at its Heletz 40 site. Next week, the partnership will be announcing the size of that commercial amount.

Tadiran Communications (TASE: TDCM) lost 0.3 percent after reporting $12 million net profit on turnover of $75 million, roughly unchanged from the parallel quarter of 2004.