Cathie Wood Talks Tesla, Bitcoin, SPACs And More On CNBC: Here Are The Highlights

Famed investor and ETF manager Cathie Wood joined Scott Wapner and Bob Pisani on the “Halftime Report” on CNBC Wednesday to share opinions on some holdings across her funds.

Wood On Tesla: Wood has been a notable bull on Tesla Inc TSLA and it remains the largest holding in the signature Ark Innovation ETF ARKK.

“Our confidence in Tesla has grown,” Wood said. The fund manager said no one is modeling the ride-share potential for Tesla when forecasting revenue and price targets. Rideshare could be more profitable for Tesla than electric vehicles.

Related Link: 7 Stocks That Fit Cathie Wood’s Big Ideas 2021, Could Be Added To Ark ETFs

Wood On Bitcoin: Wood has been bullish on Bitcoin price recently hitting on the rise in valuation that could be seen if every S&P 500 company allocated 1% of cash to the cryptocurrency.

“We have individuals now who really understand,” Wood said on Gary Gensler, the new U.S. SEC Chair.

Gensler taught a class on blockchain and Bitcoin at MIT and understand the technology and valuation, Wood added.

The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust GBTC is a popular option for investors in the U.S. to get exposure to Bitcoin as no ETFs are available currently. Wood said the probability of a Bitcoin ETF goes up with new administration understanding cryptocurrency.

The fund manager praises companies like Tesla and Square Inc SQ who are “on the right side of change” by adding Bitcoin and diversifying their cash holdings.

Wood On Telemedicine: One of the largest holdings in the Ark ETFs is Teladoc Health TDOC. The telemedicine company is held in the Ark Innovation ETF, Ark Genomic Internet ETF ARKG and Ark Next Generation Internet ETF ARKW.

“We had a great opportunity to buy into Teladoc when stay-at-home stocks flattened out,” Wood said.

Despite the stock being up 40% in 2021, Wood remains bullish and thinks the company was hurt by public sentiment of the acquisition of Livongo.

“This is a beautiful acquisition for Teladoc,"Wood said, adding that the two companies will create a powerhouse of data together.

Wood on SPACs: The Ark fund manager has added several SPACs to the portfolio recently, including some that have completed mergers and others like Experience Investment EXPC that are in the merger process.

Wood named DraftKings Inc DKNG, Skillz SKLZ and Butterfly Network Inc BFLY as former SPACs that the Ark funds own.

See also: How to Invest in Tesla Stock

“We are investing in them,” Wood said of SPACs. “We’re being very careful.”

Wood said the fund is selective and doesn’t like the incentive structure of some SPACs. The fund manager noted SPACs remain a way for the public markets to invest in some growth sooner than the traditional IPO route.

Space ETF: Wood is launching a space ETF under the Ark umbrella of funds soon.

Due to a quiet period with the SEC, Wood couldn’t discuss specific space stocks, but was bullish on the overall industry. She called space exploration the right side of change.

“We see SpaceX, Blue Origin pushing the envelope,” Wood said of the private companies. She highlighted the work that Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson have done in the space industry.

The costs of launching rockets are coming down dramatically, which could lead to strong growth in the sector, according to Wood.