ARK Invest, the investment firm known for its active bets on disruptive technology, bought $20.5 million worth of SpaceX shares on July 20 — and sold a chunk of its Robinhood position on the same day.
The firm purchased 170,634 shares of SpaceX at roughly $119.85 each, according to a trade disclosure. That same day, ARK sold 41,322 shares of Robinhood Markets, netting $4.1 million.
The Transactions
SpaceX, listed on the Nasdaq under the ticker SPCX, has been a rare holding for ARK. The company is not a traditional public company — it's still private, but the shares trade on a secondary market via a special listing. The $119.85 price tag puts the total value of the purchase at just over $20.5 million.
The Robinhood sale, meanwhile, came at a time when the trading app's stock has been volatile. ARK's disclosure doesn't say why the firm sold, but the move represents a shift in its portfolio weight.
SpaceX Shares Below IPO Price
SpaceX shares remain well below their initial public offering price. The company went public via a direct listing earlier this year, but the stock has struggled to hold its opening value. ARK's buy at $119.85 is a bet that the space company will eventually turn around.
ARK Invest founder Cathie Wood has long been bullish on SpaceX and its CEO Elon Musk. The fund's purchase comes as the broader market for space-related stocks has cooled.
Neither ARK nor SpaceX has commented on the trades. The timing of the buy and sell on the same day suggests the firm is rebalancing its holdings. For Robinhood, the sale is a small one — about 0.03% of the firm's float — but it's part of a pattern of ARK trimming positions in the stock over the past year.
The next question is whether ARK will continue to buy SpaceX at current levels, or if the IPO price floor will hold.
