TA-90 Index

The **TA-90 Index** is a Tel Aviv Stock Exchange equity index that tracks 90 Israeli-linked shares with the highest market capitalization after excluding shares in the TA-35 Index. It is a major segment benchmark for the Israeli listed-equity market and, together with the TA-35, forms the TA-125 Index.^[1]

Overview

The TA-90 Index is maintained by the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE). TASE describes it as a significant flagship index consisting of the 90 shares with the highest market capitalization on the exchange among shares that are not included in the TA-35 Index and that meet the index’s eligibility criteria.^[1] In market-structure terms, it is commonly interpreted as Israel’s main exchange-calculated mid-cap benchmark: it excludes the 35 largest eligible shares in the TA-35 and covers the next large tier of qualifying listed companies.

The index has TASE index code 143, ISIN IL00BIDX1436, Bloomberg ticker TA-90 and Reuters ticker .TA90.^[1] TASE classifies it as a tracking index and disseminates it in real time every 15 seconds during the trading day.^[1] Its calculation method is gross total return (GTR), meaning that the official index level is designed to reflect price changes and the reinvestment of gross cash distributions before withholding-tax effects, according to the exchange’s index methodology framework.^[1]

The TA-90 is closely connected to two other Israeli market-cap indices. The TA-35 Index covers the top eligible large-cap shares, while the TA-125 Index includes all shares in the TA-35 and TA-90.^[4] As a result, the TA-90 is both a standalone benchmark and one of the two building blocks of the broad large-and-mid-cap TA-125 universe. In practice, movements in the TA-90 can differ materially from the TA-35 because the TA-90 has a larger number of constituents, lower single-security weight caps and more exposure to companies below the largest capitalization tier.

History and development

The index was launched on 3 January 1999 with a base value of 100.^[1] TASE notes that the index was originally launched as the TA-75 and that it was broadened to become the TA-90 on 9 February 2017.^[1] The earlier TA-75 represented the shares following the largest-company index in the Israeli market-cap hierarchy. A study published through the Israel Securities Authority describes the earlier structure in which the large-cap TA-25 tracked the top 25 shares by market capitalization and the medium-cap TA-75 tracked the following 75 largest shares; together, those indices formed the TA-100.^[5]

The change from TA-75 to TA-90 took place as part of a broader reform of TASE equity indices. The reform widened the main benchmark structure and changed aspects of index eligibility and composition. TASE’s published index page states that the TA-75 was broadened to TA-90 as of 9 February 2017.^[1] Later, at the end of the transition period for the new methodology, TASE reported that the TA-90 would consist of 90 shares rather than 98 shares and that the TA-125 would consist of 125 shares rather than 133 shares.^[6] The same announcement stated that the free-float rate for flagship indices had been increased from 30% to 35%.^[6]

The index’s historical continuity is important for users of Israeli equity data. TASE lists the index launch date and the start of historical data as 3 January 1999, while indicating that historical data on the TASE website begins on 2 January 2000.^[1] Because the index changed from TA-75 to TA-90 in 2017, long-term series require care: pre-2017 observations reflect the predecessor structure, while post-change observations reflect the broadened 90-share methodology.

Eligibility and index universe

TASE’s index page states that the TA-90’s index universe is the RIMON, or Premium Equity Universe, and that the additional criterion is non-inclusion in the TA-35 Index.^[1] The index is limited to local-linked shares, according to the TASE page’s domicile criterion.^[1] TASE also indicates that the index has a fast track for new IPO or dual-listed shares.^[1]

The RIMON universe is part of TASE’s system of equity-index universes. For Israeli equity indices, the universe concept matters because index inclusion does not simply depend on ranking by total market capitalization. Shares must first satisfy threshold conditions and other exchange-defined requirements before they can be candidates for the main benchmark indices. The Israel Securities Authority-hosted study of indexing in Israel describes the pre-reform Tamar index universe as the list of shares that met basic threshold criteria for inclusion in TASE tracking indices and notes that key threshold criteria included minimum free-float rate, minimum average free-float value and minimum average price.^[5] The current TA-90 page identifies the applicable universe for the index as RIMON rather than Tamar, but the general principle remains that eligibility is filtered through an index-universe framework rather than by size alone.^[1]

The TA-90’s relationship to the TA-35 also creates an automatic boundary between large-cap and mid-cap coverage. A company that is included in the TA-35 cannot simultaneously be included in the TA-90.^[1] Conversely, a qualifying share that ranks below the TA-35 segment but high enough for TA-90 selection may become a TA-90 constituent, subject to the review rules, buffer rankings and other eligibility conditions.

Review process and selection rules

The index composition is reviewed semiannually. TASE lists the component review dates as the end of trading on the first Thursday in May and November.^[1] For those reviews, the free-float record date is 31 March for the May update and 30 September for the November update.^[1] TASE also states that the update record date is the end of trading on the Thursday three weeks before the index update, and that the update notice date is the end of trading on the Thursday two weeks before the update.^[1]

The ranking criterion for the TA-90 is market capitalization.^[1] TASE publishes entry and exit rankings that operate as buffers around index inclusion: the entry ranking is 80 and the exit ranking is 100.^[1] Buffer rules are common in equity-index design because they reduce turnover by preventing small movements around a cutoff point from automatically forcing immediate additions and deletions. For the TA-90, the published entry and exit ranks imply that a candidate’s rank relative to the index’s eligible universe is central to whether it is added or removed at a review.

TASE states that the index has 90 constituents and a 2% weight cap.^[1] The weight cap is a notable structural feature because it limits the maximum influence of any single stock at a rebalance. A 2% cap is materially lower than the maximum weights often observed in concentrated large-cap indices, and it means the TA-90 is designed to be less dominated by a small number of the largest constituents within its segment.

Weighting, calculation and return type

The TA-90 is a market-capitalization-ranked index with capping. The index page identifies the ranking criterion as market capitalization, while the annual report of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange describes the TA-90 as an equity index of the 90 companies with the highest market capitalization on the exchange that are not included in the TA-35 and that meet the index criteria.^[1][4] The capping rule prevents any single constituent from exceeding the published 2% maximum weight at the relevant calculation or review point.^[1]

TASE’s official calculation method for the TA-90 is gross total return.^[1] This differs from a price index, which measures only price movements, and from a net total return index, which typically accounts for withholding taxes on distributions. In a GTR framework, dividends and similar cash distributions are reflected gross of tax. This makes the TA-90’s published level suitable for analyzing the performance of the underlying basket on a reinvested-distribution basis, while not necessarily matching the after-tax experience of a particular investor.

The index is disseminated during trading hours at 15-second intervals.^[1] That frequency is relevant for exchange-traded products, institutional benchmarks and intraday market monitoring, because the index is not merely a once-a-day calculation. TASE also publishes component-level information for the TA-90, including names, symbols, security numbers, ISINs, weights, market capitalization, prices and ex-dividend status fields on its index composition page.^[2]

Constituents and market exposure

The TA-90 contains 90 shares, and its composition changes through the exchange’s semiannual reviews and any applicable fast-track changes.^[1] Because it covers the tier below the TA-35, its constituents may include companies that are large in domestic terms but not among the very largest eligible Israeli-listed companies. The index may therefore have different sector weights, liquidity characteristics and earnings drivers from the TA-35.

TASE’s composition page provides security-level information for the index. A captured example from the TASE TA-90 composition page listed Max Stock as a constituent with its symbol, security number, ISIN, weight, market capitalization and price fields.^[2] The composition page is date-sensitive, so the current membership and weights should be treated as point-in-time data rather than permanent facts.

At the end of 2025, TASE’s periodic report presented the TA-90 as one of the leading equity indices. The report showed a market capitalization of NIS 451 billion for the TA-90 as of 31 December 2025, compared with NIS 325 billion at the end of 2024.^[4] The same table reported rate-of-change figures for 2025 and 2024, placing the TA-90 alongside the TA-35, TA-125 and TA-SME60 within TASE’s principal market-cap index family.^[4]

Role in Israel’s equity market

The TA-90 is one of the core benchmarks of the Israeli equity market. It represents a segment that is broader and generally smaller-capitalization than the TA-35, but still within the main large-and-mid-cap index family. For market observers, the index can be used to distinguish the performance of Israel’s next-largest listed companies from the performance of the largest 35 shares.

The index also has importance for passive investment products and benchmark-linked assets. TASE’s own index materials classify the TA-90 as a tracking index, and the Israel Securities Authority-hosted study notes that benchmark equity indices in Israel have historically been connected to exchange-traded notes and other passive demand channels.^[1][5] The study reported that, as of June 2012, investment in exchange-traded notes tracking local equity market indices accounted for about 85% of all investment outstanding in ETNs on local equity indices.^[5] While that figure relates to an earlier market structure, it illustrates why changes to Israeli benchmark indices can matter for trading, liquidity and passive-flow dynamics.

The TA-90’s design can also affect the behavior of companies close to index thresholds. Inclusion in a major benchmark may influence visibility, trading activity and demand from index-linked funds, while deletion may have the opposite effect. However, those effects vary by company and period, and the index methodology itself is neutral: it applies published eligibility, ranking and capping rules rather than discretionary assessments of investment merit.

Relationship to the TA-125 Index

The TA-125 is defined by TASE as an index that includes all shares in the TA-35 and TA-90 indices.^[4] This makes the TA-90 one of the two direct components of the TA-125. The TA-35 supplies the largest eligible companies, while the TA-90 supplies the next 90 eligible companies. Together, they create a 125-share benchmark for a broad large-and-mid-cap segment of the Israeli market.

This relationship means that changes to the TA-90 composition also affect the TA-125, unless offset by simultaneous changes elsewhere in the index hierarchy. A company promoted from the TA-90 to the TA-35 generally remains within the TA-125 but changes sub-index classification. A company removed from the TA-90 and not included in the TA-35 generally exits the TA-125, subject to the detailed rules of the relevant review.

For investors and analysts, this structure allows decomposition of broad-market performance. TA-125 returns can be separated into large-cap TA-35 and mid-cap TA-90 components. This is useful when market moves are concentrated in the largest banks, technology firms or other large issuers, because the TA-90 may provide a different picture of domestic equity breadth.

Governance and publication

The TA-90 is calculated and published by TASE, the operator of Israel’s main securities exchange.^[1] The exchange publishes index-level data, constituent data and methodological attributes on its market data website. TASE also reports on its leading indices in its periodic corporate reporting, where the TA-90 appears with other major equity indices.^[4]

The regulatory context includes the Israel Securities Authority, which oversees Israel’s securities market. The ISA-hosted research on indexing in Israel provides background on how index composition and passive investment demand have been studied in the Israeli market.^[5] The index itself, however, is an exchange-calculated product of TASE rather than a regulator-calculated statistic.

Interpretation and limitations

The TA-90 should not be interpreted as a complete measure of the Israeli equity market. It excludes the TA-35 constituents by design and therefore omits the largest eligible listed companies.^[1] It also excludes smaller shares outside the TA-125 structure, as well as securities that do not meet the applicable index-universe and eligibility requirements. For a broader large-and-mid-cap measure, the TA-125 is the combined benchmark; for the largest-cap segment, the TA-35 is the direct comparison.

The index is also not a portfolio recommendation. Its constituents and weights are determined by TASE’s methodology, including eligibility filters, review dates, market-capitalization rankings and weight caps.^[1] The official GTR level reflects a standardized index calculation and may differ from the returns achieved by funds, exchange-traded products or other vehicles because of fees, replication methods, taxes, transaction costs, tracking error and timing differences.

Finally, users should distinguish between current values and structural rules. Index levels, weights, constituents and market capitalization change continually. The durable features are the index’s identity, operator, calculation approach, review framework and relationship to the TA-35 and TA-125, while day-to-day figures should be checked against current TASE publications.