Cathie Wood has long been aggressive in hunting tech stocks that she believes will have a “disruptive” impact on the future world. However, she sometimes sells a stock when it is high to secure gains.
In the past week, the head of Ark Investment Management sold a popular AI stock that has surged nearly 70% year-to-date.
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Cathie Wood’s investments have had a volatile ride this year, swinging from strong gains to sharp losses, and now back to outperforming the broader market.
In January and February, the Ark funds rallied as investors bet on the Trump administration’s potential deregulation that could benefit Wood’s tech bets. But the funds stumbled in the following weeks, underperforming sharply as several of its top holdings —especially Tesla, its largest position — declined amid macroeconomic and trade policy uncertainties.
Now, the fund is regaining momentum. As of June 6, the flagship Ark Innovation ETF (ARKK) is up 6.11% year-to-date, outpacing the S&P 500’s 2.02% gain.
Wood gained a remarkable 153% in 2020, which helped build her reputation and attract loyal investors. Still, her long-term performance has made many others skeptical of her aggressive style.
As of June 6, Ark Innovation ETF, with $5 billion under management, has delivered a five-year annualized return of negative 0.5%. In comparison, the S&P 500 has an annualized return of 15.18% over the same period.
The Ark Innovation ETF has seen $2.23 billion in net outflows over the past year through June 5, including nearly $154 million in the last month alone, according to ETF research firm VettaFi.
Image source: Paras Griffin/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
The Ark Innovation ETF wiped out $7 billion in investor wealth over the 10 years ending in 2024, according to an analysis by Morningstar’s analyst Amy Arnott. That made it the third-biggest wealth destroyer among mutual funds and ETFs in Arnott’s ranking.
Wood said the U.S. is coming out of a three-year “rolling recession” and heading into a productivity-led recovery that could trigger a broader bull market.
In a letter to investors published on April 30, she dismissed predictions of a recession dragging into 2026, as she expects “more clarity on tariffs, taxes, regulations, and interest rates over the next three to six months.”
“If the current tariff turmoil results in freer trade, as tariffs and non-tariff barriers come down in tandem with declines in other taxes, regulations, and interest rates, then real GDP growth and productivity should surprise on the high side of expectations at some point during the second half of this year,” she wrote.
She also struck an optimistic tone for tech stocks.
“During the current turbulent transition in the US, we think consumers and businesses are likely to accelerate the shift to technologically enabled innovation platforms including artificial intelligence, robotics, energy storage, blockchain technology, and multiomics sequencing,” she said.
But not everyone shares Wood’s bullish outlook. Her flagship Ark Innovation ETF has seen $2.23 billion in net outflows over the past year through June 5, including nearly $154 million in the last month alone, according to ETF research firm VettaFi.
Cathie Wood sold $22.8 million of Palantir stock
From June 2 to June 5, Wood’s Ark funds sold 179,846 shares of Palantir Technologies (PLTR) , which was valued at roughly $22.8 million.
Palantir is known for providing AI-driven data analytics software to the U.S. government, military, and commercial clients worldwide, including JPMorgan Chase, Airbus, and Merck.
The company reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter revenue in early May and raised its full-year outlook as demand for AI tools increased. “We are delivering the operating system for the modern enterprise in the era of AI,” CEO Alex Karp said.
While many tech stocks have struggled this year, Palantir has stood out. Its shares are up roughly 69% in 2025 and just hit a record close of $133.17 on June 3.
Related: As Palantir stock soars, veteran trader makes surprising call
Much of the recent momentum comes from its government work.
Back in May 2024, Palantir won a $480 million, five-year U.S. Army contract to build its Maven Smart System, which is a battlefield AI prototype. Last month, the Defense Department modified the contract, increasing the licensing ceiling from $480 million to $1.275 billion.
Palantir’s Foundry platform has been adopted by at least four federal agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services, according to a New York Times report published May 30. Fannie Mae also announced a partnership with Palantir in May to work on AI-based fraud detection.
However, the New York Times article also raised concerns about the company’s relationship with the Trump administration, alleging that the U.S. president could use Palantir’s technology to target immigrants and political opponents.
The article also claimed that some Palantir employees felt uncomfortable with the company’s decision to work with the Trump administration and that it “risks becoming the face of Mr. Trump’s political agenda.”
Palantir responded in a June 3 post on X, denying the accusations.
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“The recently published article by The New York Times is blatantly untrue,” the company wrote. “Palantir never collects data to unlawfully surveil Americans.”
Palantir remains a core position for Wood even after recent trims. The stock is now the 9th largest holding in the ARK Innovation ETF, accounting for 4.54%.
Wood’s latest trades in the past week include buying shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) , Amazon.com (AMZN) , Guardant Health (GH) and Veracyte (VCYT) . At the same time, she trimmed positions in Tesla (TSLA) , Roblox (RBLX) , Robinhood (HOOD) , and Meta Platforms (META) .
