In this article, we discuss the 16 biggest positions in the ARK Invest portfolio. If you want to read about some more stocks in the ARK Invest portfolio, go directly to Ark Invest Stock Portfolio: 5 Biggest Positions.
Catherine D. Wood, although relatively new to the industry, stands out as a somewhat controversial hedge fund manager. In contrast to some of the biggest hedge fund managers that aim to diversify their portfolios to capitalize on both growth and value stocks, Wood and her hedge fund, ARK Investment Management, are purely focused on growth. The fund experienced one of its most successful years since its inception in 2017, achieving an impressive 87.4% gain propelled by a 1,300% surge in Grayscale Bitcoin Trust. This performance coincided with Bitcoin reaching record highs of $20,000 per coin.
However, it was in 2020 that Wood established her reputation on Wall Street, delivering a remarkable 152.5% gain with her flagship fund amidst the pandemic. The fund achieved this by investing in stocks associated with “disruptive innovation,” such as Teladoc Health, Inc. (NYSE:TDOC) Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROKU), and Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZM). However, as the high-flying pandemic stocks experienced a subsequent downturn, Wood’s flagship fund underperformed the S&P 500 index by more than 30 basis points in both 2021 and 2022. The tech sector, in particular, faced challenges following the Federal Reserve’s decision to pursue an aggressive interest rate-hiking campaign last year.
Challenges for her investments began emerging as early as the first quarter of 2022. Morningstar Financial reported that by the end of Q1 2022, Ark Invest’s ARK Innovation ETF had experienced a loss of 29.9%. These losses followed a 24% decline in the flagship fund in 2021, highlighting the risks associated with an all-out growth approach that prompted Wood to establish her investment firm in 2014.
With that said, Cathie Wood achieved her most successful month to date as her investments in innovative technology stocks made a robust recovery, fueled by declining Treasury yields in November of this year. The flagship Ark Innovation ETF surged by 31.1% during this month, marking its most substantial monthly gain since its establishment in 2014. The fund staged a remarkable comeback following three consecutive months of losses, propelling its gains for 2023 to 47%. Considering this, we decided to examine Cathie Wood’s most recent, and consequently, most significant, investments.
Cathie Wood of ARK Investment Management
Our Methodology
These selections were organized based on the investment portfolio of ARK Investment Management as of the conclusion of the third quarter of 2023. Only the top 16 equities, ranked by value, were included. The popularity of each stock in the hedge fund universe was assessed using a database containing approximately 910 prominent hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey.
16. Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $322.1 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 28
Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) is a financial services company based in Menlo Park, California. It enables commission-free trading of stocks, exchange-traded funds, and cryptocurrencies, along with the management of individual retirement accounts through a mobile app launched in March 2015.
Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD) has recently introduced cryptocurrency trading services for customers within the European Union, marking an expansion into a market with clearer regulatory frameworks at a time when cryptocurrency firms are under heightened scrutiny in the United States. The platform will enable EU customers to engage in commission-free trading of over 25 cryptocurrencies, including popular options like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
As of the end of the third quarter of 2023, 28 hedge funds out of the 910 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey reported having stakes in Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD). Cathie Wood’s ARK, the biggest hedge fund investor for the company, owns a $322.1 million stake as of the end of the third quarter of 2023.
Much like Teladoc Health, Inc. (NYSE:TDOC) Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROKU), and Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZM), Cathie Wood holds one of the biggest positions in Robinhood Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOD).
15. CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $325.13 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 24
CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) is a biotechnology company with dual Swiss–American headquarters located in Zug, Switzerland. Pioneering the use of the CRISPR gene editing platform, the company focuses on developing medicines for a range of rare and common diseases.
In September, Mizuho initiated coverage on CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) with a Buy rating, expressing confidence in the company’s potential to emerge as the next Genentech. The firm established a $82 price target for the stock.
Insider Monkey took a look at 910 hedge funds for their third quarter of 2023 shareholdings and found that 24 had invested in the company. Aside from Steven Boyd’s Armistice Capital, CRISPR Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP)’s biggest hedge fund investor is Catherine D. Wood’s ARK Investment Management as it owns 7.1 million shares that are worth $325 million.
14. Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DNA)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $329.76 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 20
Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DNA) and its subsidiaries specialize in the development of a cell programming platform. This platform is designed for programming cells to facilitate the biological production of various products, including innovative therapeutics, food ingredients, and chemicals sourced from petroleum. The company caters to diverse end markets, encompassing specialty chemicals, agriculture, food, consumer products, and pharmaceuticals.
On December 10, Brazilian agricultural biologicals company Agrivalle revealed a fresh collaboration with Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DNA). This partnership is geared towards enhancing Agrivalle’s suite of biological products, encompassing next-generation fertilizers and biocontrol agents, leveraging the advanced biology tools provided by Ginkgo.
During Q3 2023, 20 out of the 910 hedge funds part of Insider Monkey’s database had held a stake in Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DNA). In addition, Cathie Wood’s ARK owned a $329.76 million stake in Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DNA) as of the end of the same quarter.
13. Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $346.76 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 34
Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX), a prominent online entertainment platform facilitating game creation, can be regarded as one of the most advanced iterations of a functional metaverse today. With an impressive user base of 50 million daily active users, Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX) transcends the traditional concept of a video game, incorporating its digital currency and offering a diverse range of distinctive virtual experiences.
Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX) witnessed a substantial surge in its stock value after the announcement of third-quarter results that outperformed Wall Street predictions. The company achieved a 20% growth in bookings, reaching $839.5 million, surpassing analysts’ projections of $822 million. Additionally, Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX) reported adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization amounting to $81.1 million, exceeding the anticipated figures.
As of the end of the third quarter of 2023, 34 hedge funds had stakes in the company. Mick Hellman’s HMI Capital came in as a notable stakeholder as of the end of Q3 2023, with a stake worth $207.6 million. Catherine Wood, however, came in as the biggest shareholder for the quarter.
Artisan Mid Cap Fund made the following comment about Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX) in its second quarter 2023 investor letter:
“We initiated new GardenSM positions in Keysight, Roblox and Liberty Media Corp–Liberty Formula One during the quarter. Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX) is an online platform that allows users to play games created by other users and to create their own games using the Roblox Studio, a robust suite of development and coding tools. The company’s model is similar to a social network in that user-generated content scales with user growth on the platform and benefits from viral adoption. While the graphics, user interface and general gameplay currently appeal more to younger people, Roblox is pursuing a strategy of investing heavily to accelerate its technological capabilities so that it can provide experiences that appeal to an older demographic. We believe the valuation is justifiable given the stickiness of the core platform (the average user spends 2.4 hours per day on Roblox), its attractive business model and a potential bull case where Roblox becomes a leading place to create and consume social 3D experiences for the general population.
Roblox is another (there are more) example of a company that is well-positioned to benefit from generative AI advancements. As discussed earlier, Roblox is a social gaming platform that relies on user-generated content. This content is enabled by the platform’s robustyet-simple tools for relatively novice developers. AI has the potential to turbocharge this tool set—with AI-assisted code building and generative artwork creation. Over time, this should enable a deeper pool of user-generated content that attracts an expanding set of game players.”
12. Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $360.26 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 27
Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U) is a San Francisco-based American video game software development company. Originally established in Denmark in 2004 as Over the Edge Entertainment, it underwent a name change in 2007. The company oversees a platform that provides software solutions for creating, managing, and monetizing interactive, real-time 2D and 3D content tailored for mobile phones, tablets, PCs, consoles, and AR/VR devices.
On November 10, Parker Lane, an analyst at Stifel, upheld a Buy rating for Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U). The analyst also assigned a price target of $28 to the stock.
At the end of the third quarter of 2023, 27 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $1.72 billion in Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U), compared to 30 in the preceding quarter. Jim Davidson, Dave Roux and Glenn Hutchins’ Silver Lake Partners held the highest stake in the company, worth approximately $1.13 billion. Cathie Wood’s hedge fund ARK Invest owns a $360.26 million stake in the company.
White Brook Capital Partners mentioned Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U) in its second-quarter 2023 investor letter:
“Unity Software Inc. (NYSE:U): We took a trading position in Unity Software during the quarter. A trading position is one where I expect the duration of the investment to be relatively short at the time of investment. During the first quarter, I completed much of the work and viewed Unity as attractive based on valuation, but decided to pass. Behind that decision were fundamental questions around corporate governance and the probability that Apple, at the unveiling of their headset, would either go alone in providing tools for developers to produce content for their new augmented and virtual reality efforts or also announce a wide settlement with Unity’s primary competitor, Epic Games, of all outstanding legal matters and a new partnership. Instead, Unity is being relied upon to help developers. Due to continuing concerns around their incentive plan and the strength of the board, it is unlikely that the position will prove to be a multiyear holding, but they are very likely beneficiaries of growth in artificial intelligence and virtual reality in the short term.
Unity theoretically benefits from several trends coming together at once.
1.Augmented and virtual reality were unveiled too early, they’re not permanent busts. Artificial Intelligence advances should improve automation efforts that make it easier for developers to produce more intricate and complex environments and games in three-dimensional space. Improvements in chip development, notably Apple Silicon, but also by competitive chip manufacturers like NVidia and AMD, should also improve playback and interaction of three-dimensional worlds…” (Click here to read the full text)
11. Teladoc Health, Inc. (NYSE:TDOC)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $377.59 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 28
Teladoc Health, Inc. (NYSE:TDOC) is a global telemedicine and virtual healthcare company based in the United States. Its main services encompass telehealth, medical opinions, AI and analytics, telehealth devices, and licensable platform services.
Teladoc Health, Inc. (NYSE:TDOC) reported an 8% growth in third-quarter revenue, reaching $660 million, driven by strong results in its chronic condition management business and consistent membership growth, boasting a user base of 90 million. In addition, the telehealth company reduced its losses in the past quarter, with a net loss of $57 million, or $0.35 per share, compared to a net loss of $73.5 million, or $0.45 per share, in the third quarter of 2022.
During Q3 2023, 28 out of the 910 hedge funds part of Insider Monkey’s database had held a stake in Teladoc Health, Inc. (NYSE:TDOC). Out of these, the firm’s biggest shareholder in Q3 was also ARK Investment Management as it owned 20.31 million shares that are worth $377.59 million.
10. Shopify Inc. (NYSE:SHOP)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $379.54 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 69
Shopify Inc. (NYSE:SHOP) stands as a prominent provider of internet infrastructure for commerce, delivering tools that empower businesses to initiate, expand, market, and oversee retail operations of any scale. Widely utilized by millions of businesses in 175 countries, its platform and services play a crucial role in supporting diverse enterprises.
In its third-quarter earnings report, Shopify Inc. (NYSE:SHOP) witnessed a significant 25% surge in total revenue, reaching $1.7 billion compared to the previous year. Monthly recurring revenue demonstrated robust growth, experiencing a 32% increase and reaching $141 million, driven by sustained growth across all of Shopify Inc. (NYSE:SHOP)’s subscription plans. Additionally, the company disclosed an operating income of $122 million, marking a substantial improvement from the $346 million loss reported a year ago.
As of Q3 2023, 69 of the 910 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned shares of Shopify Inc. (NYSE:SHOP), valued at $3.9 billion. Cathie Wood’s hedge fund reported owning a stake worth $379.54 million by the end of the quarter.
Here is what Baron Global Advantage Fund has to say about Shopify Inc. (NYSE:SHOP) in its Q3 2023 investor letter:
“Shopify Inc. is a cloud-based software provider for multi-channel commerce. Shares gave back some of their strong performance from the first half of 2023, declining 15.5% on the back of rising concerns related to the health of the consumer and the expansion of TikTok and Temu into the U.S. While we are cognizant of these near-term risks, we believe that Shopify will continue to benefit from its position as the commerce operating system for its merchants. Rather than replacing Shopify, various selling channels, including TikTok, are managed within the platform, which should enable Shopify to maintain its competitive advantage over the long term. During the quarter, Shopify announced an agreement with Amazon that will allow merchants to offer Buy with Prime within the Shopify ecosystem, enabling Shopify to act as the payments provider for these transactions and alleviating a key concern. Lastly, the company also reported strong financial results, including 17% year-over-year gross merchandise volume growth, 31% revenue growth, and consensus-beating non-GAAP operating income that outpaced estimates by over $90 million. We remain shareholders due to Shopify’s strong competitive positioning, innovative culture, and long runway for growth, as it still holds less than a 2% share of the global commerce market.”
9. Twilio Inc. (NYSE:TWLO)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $417.43 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 43
Twilio Inc. (NYSE:TWLO), headquartered in San Francisco, California, is an American company that offers programmable communication tools. It facilitates making and receiving phone calls, sending and receiving text messages, and performing various communication functions through its web service APIs.
On November 8, Twilio Inc. (NYSE:TWLO) unveiled its financial results for Q3 2023, showcasing a 5% year-over-year revenue increase to $1.0 billion, accompanied by a remarkable 71% year-over-year reduction in net loss to $140 million. The company achieved a normalized EPS of $0.58, surpassing consensus estimates by $0.22. Following the earnings announcement, JMP Securities analyst Patrick Walravens reaffirmed a ‘Market Outperform’ rating for Twilio Inc. (NYSE:TWLO) shares, maintaining an unchanged target price of $110, indicative of a 78.72% upside potential based on the share price.
Insider Monkey’s third quarter of 2023 survey covering 910 hedge funds revealed 43 Twilio Inc. (NYSE:TWLO) investors. Out of these, the largest shareholder during Q3 2023 was David Blood and Al Gore’s Generation Investment Management due to its $505.6 million stake. Catherine Wood was the firm’s second largest stakeholder for the quarter, with a stake worth $417.43 million.
8. Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $428.48 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 45
Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) is a molecular diagnostics company with a specialization in detecting early-stage cancers. Initially concentrating on early detection and prevention of colorectal cancer, the company introduced Cologuard® in 2014, marking the first stool DNA test for colorectal cancer.
In early November, Exact Sciences disclosed third-quarter revenue of $628.3 million for the period ending September 30, 2023, in contrast to $523.1 million for the corresponding period in 2022. The company achieved over 1 million test results, setting a record for Cologuard® and Oncotype DX® tests. Additionally, the midpoint guidance for full-year 2023 revenue and adjusted EBITDA was raised by $28 million and $25 million, respectively.
As of Q3 2023, EXACT Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) shares were held by 45 prominent hedge funds with the total value of shares held by hedge funds valued at $1.0 billion. Cathie Wood’s ARK Investment Management was the largest hedge fund shareholder on record with ownership of 6.28 million shares valued at $478.48 million.
Artisan Small Cap Fund made the following comment about Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS) in its Q3 2023 investor letter:
“Among our top detractors were Lattice Semiconductor, Shockwave and Exact Sciences Corporation (NASDAQ:EXAS). Exact Sciences is a leading provider of diagnostic testing and maker of the noninvasive colorectal cancer screening test Cologuard®. The stock was a top performer through the first half of the year but pulled back in Q3. The company reported strong financial results as 31% growth in screening revenues (mostly Cologuard®) drove an overall 19% revenue increase. However, screening revenues fell slightly short of elevated expectations and were not good enough to support the stock’s year-to-date outperformance. We continue to be bullish on Cologuard’s® long-term growth potential; the addressable market expanded significantly in 2021 when the United States Preventive Services Task Force lowered the recommended age for colorectal cancer screenings to 45 from 50. Our research indicates the lowered screening age expands the company’s addressable market by ~18 million unscreened individuals. We also believe meaningful long[1]term opportunities exist as the company develops additional high-value cancer tests.”
7. DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $430.64 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 51
DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG) functions as a digital sports entertainment and gaming company with operations in the United States and internationally. The company offers online sports betting and casino services, daily fantasy sports, media content, and various consumer products.
Following the release of its third fiscal quarter earnings, DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG) witnessed a new upward trend in its stock. The company reported $790.0 million in revenues for Q3’23, reflecting a 57% year-over-year increase in top-line growth. Notably, net losses and adjusted EBITDA losses substantially narrowed year-to-date, with DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG)’ adjusted EBITDA losses decreasing by 55% in the first nine months of the year compared to the same period the previous year, amounting to $302.1 million.
As of the close of Q3 2023, 51 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owned stakes in DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG), a notable increase from the previous quarter’s 40 hedge funds. The collective worth of these stakes is over $2.08 billion. Cathie Wood’s ARK Invest was a leading shareholder of the company, with a stake valued at $430.64 million.
Baron Discovery Fund made the following comment about DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG) in its Q1 2023 investor letter:
“We re-initiated a position in former Fund holding DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG), a leading online sportsbook, digital casino, and daily fantasy sports operator. DraftKings’ mobile applications offer consumers the ability to wager on a wide variety of sporting events and play hundreds of real-money casino games. The company has spent the past three years building a proprietary technology stack that improves the customer experience and delivers best-in-class breadth of bet types (such as parlays, same-game parlays, and player props). State-level online sports betting (OSB) and iCasino legalization, along with a multi-year consumer adoption timeline in active states, has supported a 90% revenue growth rate for DraftKings since 2020. The opportunity for OSB legalization remains significant, with under 50% of the U.S. population currently having legal mobile sports betting. We expect 65% to 80% of the population will eventually have access to OSB. ICasino is currently legal in just seven states representing roughly 13% of the population. ICasino product adoption in legalized states has been robust, with the average user spending twice as much as a sports bettor. While the pace of legalization for iCasino has been slower, we believe additional states will pass regulation in the coming years.
As U.S. states began to legalize sports betting, the DraftKings management team moved quickly to build widespread brand awareness. DraftKings is the #2 operator in both OSB and iCasino by a wide margin, and has demonstrated improving market share trends across almost all states. When a new state legalizes sports betting, DraftKings has a first mover advantage as many of its customers are converted from the DraftKings daily fantasy sports offering. The quality of their sportsbook product along with increasingly targeted promotional spending results in strong customer retention and high lifetime values. In states where iCasino is legal, DraftKings can cross-sell OSB customers. DraftKings’ scale and product advantages are creating a flywheel that will enable the company to continue to out-invest the competition in acquisition marketing, retention, and research and development. The high barriers to entry are resulting in a consolidated industry that will eventually lead to a highly profitable business. This is evidenced by older-vintage state contribution margins that are already approaching 40%. Longer term, we believe DraftKings can generate EBITDA margins between 20% and 30% with strong free-cash-flow conversion.”
6. Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)
Cathie Wood & Ark Invest’s Q3 2023 Investment: $481.86 million
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 60
Founded in 2009 by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey, Block Inc. (NYSE:SQ) is an American public company. Originally named Square Inc., the company encompasses diverse businesses within the financial technology sector. As of 2023, Block’s service network boasts nearly 4 million merchants and 51 million users.
By the end of this year’s third quarter, 60 out of the 910 hedge funds surveyed by Insider Monkey were Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ)’s shareholders. Andreas Halvorsen’s Viking Global owned 12.3 million shares that were worth $545 million to enable it to become the biggest investor among these. Catherine Wood was the firm’s second largest shareholder, with an investment valued at $481.86 million by the end of Q3.
Here is what Baron FinTech Fund has to say about Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) in its Q3 2023 investor letter:
“Block, Inc. provides point-of-sale technology to small businesses and operates the Cash App ecosystem of financial services for individuals. Shares fell due to a confluence of factors, including slowing growth, a brief system outage, and the departure of a key executive who ran the Square business segment. Ongoing investor concerns over consumer spending and a recession did not help sentiment. Nevertheless, Block reported strong quarterly results with 27% gross profit growth and adjusted EBITDA more than doubling. We believe Block’s businesses are resilient, and greater management focus on cost discipline should drive further margin expansion. We continue to own the stock due to Block’s long runway for growth, durable competitive advantages, and track record of innovation.”
In addition to Teladoc Health, Inc. (NYSE:TDOC) Roku, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROKU), and Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZM), Block, Inc. (NYSE:SQ) ranks as one of ARK Invest’s top picks.
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Disclosure. None. Ark Invest Stock Portfolio: 16 Biggest Positions. is originally published on Insider Monkey.
