Cathie Wood, chief of Ark Investment Management, frequently adjusts her top positions, adding to a holding when the stock falls and selling when it rises.
Last week, she made some eye-catching buys as markets swung on President Donald Trump’s shifting tariff policies.
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Wood’s flagship fund, the Ark Innovation ETF (ARKK) , is down 19.7% year-to-date as of April 14, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 8.1% and 12.8% during the same period, respectively. The ETF has wiped out the post-election gains since last November.
Opinions on Wood vary. To her supporters, she is a visionary with a remarkable 153% return in 2020. However, her longer-term performance has raised doubts about her aggressive, opportunistic approach.
As of April 14, Ark Innovation ETF, with $5 billion under management, has delivered an annualized three-year return of negative 8.47% and a five-year return of negative 0.11%.
In comparison, the S&P 500 index has a three-year annualized return of 8.38% and a five-year return of 15.74%.
The Ark Innovation ETF has seen a net outflow of $2.09 billion over the past 12 months through April 11, according to ETF research firm VettaFi.
Image source: Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
Cathie Wood’s investment strategy explained
Wood’s investment strategy is straightforward: Her Ark ETFs typically buy shares in emerging high-tech companies in fields such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, biomedical technology, and robotics.
Wood says these companies have the potential to reshape industries, but their volatility leads to major fluctuations in Ark funds’ values.
Related: Cathie Wood’s net worth: The Ark Invest CEO’s wealth & income
Over the 10 years ending in 2024, the Ark Innovation ETF erased $7 billion in shareholder wealth, according to a recent analysis by Morningstar’s Amy Arnott. That made it the third-biggest wealth destroyer among mutual funds and ETFs in the ranking.
Cathie Wood on Trump’s tariffs
Wood recently questioned Trump’s tariffs on the “In The Know with Cathie Wood” channel.
“Things do feel a bit chaotic out there and the markets are convulsing as a result. There’s a lot of uncertainty,” she said.
Wood warned that if Trump’s tariff plan isn’t managed carefully, it could trigger a bear market or even a recession. Still, she’s hopeful things will calm down as the negotiations move forward.
“Trump wants to be one of the greatest presidents ever…he’s not going to get there by throwing the economy into a recession and the stock market into a bear market,” she said.
Not all investors share Wood’s optimism. The Ark Innovation ETF has seen a net outflow of $2.09 billion over the past 12 months through April 11, according to ETF research firm VettaFi.
Cathie Wood buys $22 million of Coinbase stock
On April 7, 8, and 10, Wood’s Ark Innovation ETF bought 128,093 shares of Coinbase Global Inc. (COIN) .
That chunk of stock is valued at roughly $22.6 million. The purchase was made as the stock slid to its lowest since last September.
Coinbase operates the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange and generates revenue through transaction fees from cryptocurrency trading on its platform. Last year, the stock gained 42.7%, driven by higher crypto asset prices and continued Coinbase One subscriber growth.
Coinbase’s stock price is closely related to crypto prices. The stock lost 29% year-to-date as cryptocurrencies plunged.
Trump’s tariffs have raised recession fears, which could make riskier assets like bitcoin less appealing to investors.
Wood’s last Coinbase stock purchase was in March, when she bought 38,865 shares for roughly $8 million. That purchase followed Trump’s announcement that his administration is working to create a Crypto Strategic Reserve that will include five cryptocurrencies: bitcoin, ether, XRP, solana, and cardano.
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Coinbase is one of Wood’s biggest holdings in her portfolio. As of Dec. 31, 2024, she held $753.5 million in Coinbase, making up 6.24% of all the Ark funds. The stock ranked as the third-largest position, according to 13-F filings tracked by WhaleWisdom.
Alongside the Coinbase buy, Wood also added 340,959 shares of Nvidia, 50,627 shares of Amazon, and 95,699 shares of Tempus AI last week.
Related: Veteran fund manager unveils eye-popping S&P 500 forecast
