- Ark Invest ETFs bought 132,128 shares of Tesla since the company announced its big bitcoin buy.
- Cathie Wood, the CEO of Ark Invest, said her “confidence in Tesla has grown” in recent months.
- The CEO sees autonomous ridesharing as a source of future growth at the EV maker.
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Cathie Wood’s Ark ETFs added over 130,000 shares of Tesla since last week when the EV maker revealed a $1.5 billion bitcoin investment and said it plans to begin accepting the cryptocurrency as a form of payment in the future.
Three ARK funds added exposure to Tesla. The ARK Next Generation Internet ETF bought 29,508 shares of Tesla, while the ARK Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF added 13,173 shares, and the ARK Innovation ETF purchased 89,447 shares.
The total purchase between the three exchange-traded funds was 132,128 shares worth some $105.5 million as of Wednesday’s closing price.
Wood sat down with CNBC on Thursday to discuss her ETFs’ latest purchases as well as her broader market views. She told CNBC she believes Tesla is on the “right side of change” after its recent move into bitcoin.
The CEO also said her team’s “confidence in Tesla has grown” after doing research into “what ride sharing potentially could add.”
Wood argued an autonomous ride-sharing play by Tesla "could limit risk significantly" because "it's a much more profitable business than electric vehicles."
Although Wood remains bullish on Tesla, she did note the potential for a "valuation reset" if "rates were to take a sharp turn up" and said her "portfolios would be prime candidates for that reset, of course."
Still, the CEO of the over $50 billion hedge fund Ark Invest argued if there is a reset and "fear" in the markets, that her team "will use it to our benefit, concentrating our portfolio to our highest conviction names."
When asked about stretched valuations in her holdings, the CEO focused on growth, saying, "these companies are going to grow into their multiples a lot faster than most investors are expecting."
The bullish tone from Cathie Wood comes as Tesla's gigafactory in Berlin is set to open this year, the Austin factory continues to expand, and now Tesla has set its sights on India, planning a new manufacturing unit in the southern state of Karnataka.
Wedbush Securities said the move to a new market in India might have a "number of logistical and ramp-up issues," but they believe "the country has significant pent-up demand for EVs and represents a major potential growth area for Tesla."
Tesla traded down 1.35%, at $787.35, as of 2:34PM ET on Thursday.
