Cathie Wood, the founder of Ark Invest, is known for her support of Elon Musk’s innovations and ambitions. Wood’s biggest holding in the flagship Ark Innovation fund is Tesla, and SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX) is the top holding in the Ark Venture fund. Musk is the chief executive officer of both companies.
It’s not surprising that Wood holds shares of Musk-led companies because her investment strategy involves getting in on innovators early — before they accomplish major goals. Wood has spoken about the promise of robotaxis as a growth engine for Tesla. As for SpaceX, Ark wrote prior to its IPO: “The existing business segments, at their current trajectories, are plenty sufficient to justify a compelling investment case.”
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Wood’s SpaceX holding, through the Ark Venture Fund, took place in the private market, as the company’s valuation climbed from $350 billion in 2024 to the current valuation of more than $2.1 trillion. The stock began trading on June 12, after raising $75 billion in the world’s biggest IPO on record.
So, now you might wonder: What move did Wood make on IPO day? Let’s find out, and consider if you should follow.
SpaceX lockup restrictions
First, it’s important to note that Wood can’t sell SpaceX shares immediately because she is restricted by a lockup period. During this period, early investors in the company aren’t allowed to sell their shares. Often, lockup periods span the first 90 to 180 days after the IPO. The idea is to prevent a great number of shares from flooding the market in a short period of time as some of the company’s first supporters lock in some gains.
SpaceX put into place a tiered lockup schedule so that early investors may sell a certain percentage of their shares at various intervals. The first comes after the second-quarter earnings report in late July.
So, it’s clear that, on IPO day, Wood didn’t sell her SpaceX shares. But she didn’t remain inactive either. In fact, Wood took the opportunity to increase her investment in the industrial and technology player. She added the stock to four of her six actively managed exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Here are the specific moves Cathie Wood made:
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Ark Innovation bought 1,690,839 shares of SpaceX. The stock now has a 3.2% weight in the fund.
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Ark Autonomous Technology bought 736,442 shares of SpaceX. It has a 4.5% weight in the fund.
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Ark Next Generation Internet bought 325,562 SpaceX shares. The stock accounts for 2.6% of the fund.
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Ark Space and Defense bought 538,341 SpaceX shares. That’s for a 6.8% weighting.
