El Al Israel Airlines Ltd. (TASE:ELAL) will distribute its first dividend since 2017. This follows the 'deal' between the state and the airline that was first reported by "Globes" about a year ago, in which the company agreed to slightly increase its contribution to security costs and in return, the state would bring forward the ban on distributing dividends that has been imposed since the Covid pandemic.
After receiving state approval to distribute a dividend on 2025 profits, El Al's board of directors has decided to distribute a cash dividend to shareholders, for profits from the first three quarters of 2025. The dividend to be distributed is expected to amount to about $100 million, or approximately $0.18 per share (NIS 0.57).
The controlling shareholders, the Rozenberg family, holds 45.1% of the company's shares, so it is expected to receive $45 million. The dividend amount is 30% of the net profit attributable to shareholders recorded by El Al in the first three quarters of 2025 - profit of $353.3 million.
According to the financial statements, at the end of the third quarter of the year, El Al held cash, cash equivalents and liquidity balances totaling about $1.83 billion. Equity attributable to shareholders at this time stood at about $1 billion.
Approval for the dividend distribution was granted as part of an amendment to agreements signed between El Al and the state during the Covid period, after the company completed the full repayment of the loans provided by the state. In accordance with the updated agreements, El Al is authorized to distribute up to 30% of 2025 profits as dividends, and up to 40% of profits in the years 2026-2028.
It is interesting to note that El Al still does not actually pay corporate tax, due to past losses that accumulated mainly during the Covid years, but also before. According to the latest reports, the company continues to offset its profits against losses for tax purposes.
El Al has recorded exceptional profitability in recent years, following improved operations and efficiency, but what helped it most was the reduction in Israel operations of foreign airlines during the war, which strengthened its position on profitable routes to the US. In 2024, the company recorded a record profit of over $500 million, and the trend continued during 2025.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on January 6, 2026.
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