Ilan Ben-Dov plans to step down as chairman of Partner Communications <PTNR.TA>, Israel’s second largest mobile phone operator, the company said on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Partner <PTNR.O> said in a statement Ben-Dov — also the controlling shareholder — intends to continue to serve as a director of Partner and that the board will discuss appointing a new chairman in the next few days.<\/p>\n
The company did not give a reason for Ben-Dov’s resignation or state when he would e<\/p>\n
nd his term.<\/p>\n
Partner’s shares were down 1.6 percent at midday in Tel Aviv compared with a flat broader marker.<\/p>\n
Ben-Dov controls Partner, which operates under the Orange brand name, through stakes in Scailex <SCIX.TA> and its parent Suny Electronics <SUNY.TA>.<\/p>\n
Scailex, the sole importer of Samsung mobile handsets in Israel, holds 44.54 percent of Partner’s shares while Suny has an additional 1.4 percent.<\/p>\n
Ori Licht, an analyst at the IBI Investment House, said investors would ultimately approve of Ben-Dov’s decision to step down since reports in the Israeli media about problems with his other businesses were weighing on its shares.<\/p>\n
“Ben-Dov apparently decided to take a step back and remain an owner and a director but not the man who stands up front and represents the face of the company,” Licht said.<\/p>\n
He noted that Partner’s main rival, Cellcom <CEL.N> <CEL.TA>, was trading at a 20 percent premium to Partner, which the market calls the “Ben-Dov premium.”<\/p>\n
Last month, debt-laden Scailex said it was seeking to sell an unspecified amount of shares in Partner to a strategic partner, while maintaining control, to shore up its balance sheet.<\/p>\n
Scailex bought a controlling stake in Partner from Hutchison Telecommunications <0013.HK> in 2009 for $1.38 billion, or $17.50 per share, well above Friday’s closing price on Nasdaq of $9.02.<\/p>\n
Scailex’s debt is estimated at more than 3 billion shekels ($781 million). In recent weeks, the Israeli units of Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s Investors Service both cut its ratings citing less than adequate liquidity.<\/p>\n
Scailex has also failed in an attempt to sell 50 percent of its import and distribution activities for Samsung mobile phones.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ilan Ben-Dov plans to step down as chairman of Partner Communications