ARKX Isn't The First Space ETF: Here's How The Others Have Performed

The brand new ARK Space Exploration & Innovation ETF ARKX has gotten a lot of headlines this week. The new Space ETF is off to a lackluster start, trading mostly flat so far in its first two days on the market.

The top three holdings of the ARKX ETF are Trimble Inc TRMB, 3D Printing Etf PRNT and Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc KTOS. ARKX investors likely see space travel technology as an exciting new investment frontier, but the new ARK ETF isn’t the first space technology ETF.

Related Link: Bitcoin ETF Proposals: The SEC's Long History Of Rejections

ROKT And UFO Returns: The SPDR S&P Kensho Final Frontiers ETF ROKT launched back in October 2018. Since that time, the fund has generated a total return of 38.1%, lagging the 50.4% total return of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY over that stretch. The top three holdings of the ROKT ETF are Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc AJRD, Maxar Technologies Inc MAXR and Boeing Co BA.

The Procure Space ETF UFO also launched in April 2019. Unfortunately for UFO investors, the fund has also lagged the S&P 500 since its inception. The UFO ETF has generated just a 14.5% total return compared to a 42% total return by the SPY. The fund’s top three holdings are SKY Perfect JSAT Holdings Inc., Eutelsat Communications SA EUTLF and Garmin Ltd. GRMN.

Benzinga’s Take: The bad news for ARKX investors is that the other two space funds haven’t performed particularly well, lagging the S&P 500 as a whole. The good news is that the three space ETFs clearly have very different holdings, and Cathie Woods’ other ARK ETFs have performed extremely well in recent years.

(Photo: Greg Rakoxy via Unsplash)