Investing

Cathie Wood Just Bought 5 Million Shares of This High-Flying Innovator

Joey Frenette

Published: January 27, 2025 10:27 am

Cathie Wood, the woman behind the scenes over at Ark Invest, is still taking a proactive approach to play what she believes will be the next big wave of disruptive tech innovation. Though her Ark line of funds has sunk from well off their highs, I do think the ongoing AI-driven tech boom could make Ark a household name again within the active ETF scene.

While there are numerous sub-themes within the category of disruptive innovation (think next-generation internet to robotics and automation, just to name a few), the massive volatility and aggressive growth profile will not be for everyone, even as momentum comes back online for the broad basket of Ark ETFs.

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Keeping up with Cathie Wood

In any case, I find Cathie Wood will be one of the names we’ll hear a lot more about every year this tech-driven rally and AI boom goes by without so much as a correction. While a return of 2020-21 levels of fame may or may not be in the cards, I do think her moves are still worth following if you’re a young, tech-savvy investor who believes that tech is far from a bubble and that the sector could be a source of long-term gains as disruptive innovations cause a tsunami of productivity gains that lifts the broad markets.

Of course, it’s tough to time when disruptive, game-changing new technologies (like autonomous robotaxis or next-generation mRNA vaccines) will come into their prime and start generating ample profit. While I’m not inclined to discount such technologies and their wide-sweeping applications, I do acknowledge that getting the timing wrong could be met with less-than-ideal returns for investors.

As such, being too early to the party could be just as bad as arriving late. Either way, Wood’s commentary and moves (buys and sells) are worth paying attention to if you share her aggressive approach or belief in tech’s ability to provide an uplifting effect on the modern economy.

Cathie Wood picks up millions of Archer Aviation shares. Is this a vote of confidence for eVTOLs?

In any case, one notable move Cathie Wood made was the purchase of 5 million more shares in Archer Aviation (NYSE:ACHR) to close off 2024. For those unfamiliar with the firm, it’s an aerospace firm involved in the development of eVTOLs (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft. Call them flying cars, if you will, but they’re more like oversized drones that can give people a literal lift through the city.

As you may know, Wood is a vocal fan of autonomous robotaxis. Part of the reason she retains a huge stake in Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) for her Ark funds is because of the massive total addressable robotaxi market. Autonomous robotaxi vehicles aren’t the only transportation innovation to keep tabs on, however.

As “next-generation” eVTOLs start making the news more often (Palmer Luckey’s AI military tech firm Anduril recently teamed up with Archer for work on a defense eVTOL), names like Archer stand to be major movers. Indeed, the $5 billion firm may be incredibly risky, given the stakes and the lack of profitability. However, for those who believe eVOTLs will play a growing role in the future of transportation, it’s hard not to be intrigued by some of the names in the space, Archer being one of the more notable ones.

After gaining more than 220% in three months, ACHR stock is a fast-moving that could go either way. With JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) recently downgrading Archer (and another eVTOL stock) in an “altitude adjustment,” perhaps waiting for a pullback could make sense. After all, it’s not like eVTOLs will be soaring overhead overnight!

The bottom line

Though the Trump administration could be more conducive to getting things moving, there remain numerous certifications and regulations to get through before top eVTOL stocks can justify their valuations. Either way, I’d leave the buying (and selling) to Cathie Wood.

For those interested in following her, buying the Ark ETFs could be the way to go as we enter the latter half of the decade and perhaps a second wave of a tech bull run on the back of Trump 2.0, potentially lower rates, and AI.