Hewlett-Packard goes shopping in Israel

As if investors needed a reminder that Israel is an attractive investment destination for multinationals, the news today that Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) is spending $117.5 million to buy Israeli NUR Macroprinters (OTC: NURMF) is just that reminder. While M&A of publicly traded Israeli companies has sagged this year, this move by HP should remind investors of the tremendous bargains that these Israeli stocks which trade in the U.S. provide.

Leave it to HP to serve up that reminder. The company has been extremely active when it comes to investing in Israel. Today's move expands HP's portfolio of digital presses and wide-format printers and furthers its strategy to digitize analog prints.

A big congratulations to the team at Fortissimo Capital on an amazing investment. They invested $12 million in December '05 for 55% of NUR Macroprinters, as the company was on the verge of collapse. Today, that investment is worth more than $60 million!

Aaron Katsman is the lead Portfolio Manager and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. and Senior Editor of IsraelNewsletter.com. Disclosure: Writer has no position in any stock mentioned as of 12/10/07.