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Cathie Wood is a name that ought to be familiar to many of my readers. If her name is new to you, Wood, of ARK Investment Management LLC, is arguably the best, savviest fund manager alive today.
She has an uncanny eye for finding breakout stocks, and her track record proves it.
How good is the "best?" Wood has handily beaten the fastest, sharpest bull market in history - trounced it by a stunning 471%.
But, unbelievably, she's recently been catching some flak in The Wall Street Journal, of all places. I'll explain why in a moment, but I learned a long time ago that it can be outrageously profitable to look at what mainstream Wall Street is turning its nose up at... and make a beeline for it.
The Journal was actually skeptical of what, in my view, is one of Wood's shrewdest investments yet, in a sector that's likely to grow 300% to hit $82 billion in five years.
Wall Street may not be interested, but I don't want you to miss out...
This Is Key to Beating COVID-19 and Much More
During the recent tech-stock correction, The Wall Street Journal declared that Wood and ARK were facing their "toughest test yet" and questioned her strategy, though, to be completely fair to the Journal, ARK's funds were underperforming the NASDAQ Composite at the time.
But the writer completely overlooked what I've always viewed as a fundamental rule of investing in tech stocks: Pullbacks are opportunities to load up on quality companies. I bet that's not lost on Cathie Wood, either.
The play the Journal was so skeptical of is in the field of genomics.
The field of genomics really got started 10 years ago, give or take, about seven years after the human genome was first sequenced.
$1.4 Trillion 5G Aftershock
5G is creating a $1.4 trillion aftershock market - and 20 small companies could produce 10X gains by the end of the year.
$1.4 Trillion 5G Aftershock
5G is creating a $1.4 trillion aftershock market - and 20 small companies could produce 10X gains by the end of this year.
Here in 2021, genomics gives doctors and scientists the "battle plan" to combat all kinds of diseases, including viruses, antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and parasites such as malaria. The trick is to look at the organisms' specific, exploitable weaknesses tucked away in its genes.
Of course, genomics was absolutely critical in fighting the novel coronavirus.
Scientists had the SARS-CoV-2 virus clocked last spring; it took mere days for the virus to be genetically sequenced and for that information to be disseminated to researchers around the world. Thanks to mRNA technology, companies like Pfizer, BioNTech, and Moderna had numerous vaccine candidates ready for animal and human testing by mid- to late spring of 2020. Little wonder it was called "Operation Warp Speed."
Here we are, barely 13 months after the first lockdowns, and fully 25% of American adults - including 80% of all K-12 teachers and staff - are fully vaccinated. Not only that, but genomics enabled researchers to identify, perfect, and clone antibodies like Eli Lilly's bamlanivimab in quantities high enough to help the seriously ill.
In the days before genomics, back in the 1960s, the previous speed record for vaccine development, targeting a mumps virus, was more than four years. There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that, without this technology, humanity would be looking at the grim prospect of years and years' worth of death, economic carnage, and social disruption.
Yet here we are, barely 13 months after the first lockdowns, and fully 25% of American adults and 80% of American educators are fully vaccinated. And of course genomics have made it much easier to track down the so-called "variants of concern" - mutated coronaviruses.
And so, from an investment perspective, the question is... why wouldn't you own shares that put you in perfect position to capitalize on these monumental breakthroughs? That's something the mainstream financial media just doesn't get - but Cathie Wood gets it, I get it, and now you get it.
Profit from the Biggest Medical Advance in 300 Years
Regular investors simply don't have to worry about rolling dice and picking stocks in this dynamic sector; they can put Wood and ARK in the driver's seat. That's because Wood, one of the greatest "disruptor" stock-pickers alive today, runs a genomics-focused exchange-traded fund (ETF), ARK Genomic Revolution ETF (BATS: ARKG).
Her genomics picks are poised to deliver over the long haul, whereas stocks like Moderna Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) have sold off quickly as COVID-19 vaccine euphoria faded. But these companies aren't just focused on tackling coronavirus. For this fund, Wood picks companies involved in pushing forward genomic technologies such as CRISPR, a form of gene editing. The fund also targets genomic treatments, genetic diagnostics, agricultural biology, stem cells, and so on.
20 Best 5G Stocks to Buy Now
Forget AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon. The real returns in 2021 and beyond will come from this backdoor 5G market.
20 Best 5G Stocks to Buy Now
Forget AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon. The real returns in 2021 and beyond will come from this backdoor 5G market.
These are the companies that will benefit hugely from the advances being made in genomics. They will revolutionize our healthcare, bring about personalized diagnostics and treatments, help optimize our food supply, and give us better cannabis, to boot.
It'd be tough to run down all the best holdings in ARKG, but some of them are...
Editas Medicine Inc. (NASDAQ: EDIT), backed by Bill Gates among others, is one of the world's leading companies in the CRISPR gene editing space. Last March, the firm was the first in the world to inject CRISPR into a living human, as part of its ongoing trials to cure and reverse certain kinds of blindness by rewriting the DNA of the patients' eyes.
Beam Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: BEAM) is also developing gene-editing treatments, but uses a slightly different method than CRISPR - one that's supposed to be more accurate. The firm has two gene treatments for leukemia currently in the preclinical stages of development and is doing research with an eye to correct small mutations that cause severe or even fatal liver and eye diseases.
Fate Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: FATE) focuses on extracting and reprogramming immune stem cells. The goal is to make them more active against cancers, or in cases of immune diseases, less active against the body's own cells. By doing this outside the body, Fate can achieve more exact control over how the stem cells are reprogrammed. The firm already has four treatments through phase 1 trials.
Berkeley Lights Inc. (NASDAQ: BLI) has created the integrated platform that makes genomics work like this possible, by enabling researchers to quickly and accurately find and isolate the exact cells they're looking for. Using its integrated, custom-made chips, reagents, machines, and software, Berkeley Lights lets scientists increase the speed and scale of finding the right antibodies - or correctly identify where an immune cell comes from and all its properties.
Now, as I mentioned earlier, it pays to take the long view and look at dips as buying opportunities. Right now, the fund is down just under 11% year to date - that's what the media was harping on, but that figure has to be looked at in context. What's more, ARKG is trading at just 0.1% over net asset value (NAV) right now, an almost unthinkably low premium and one I'm not sure we'll see again.
From the time ARKG rebounded on March 16, 2020, which was one week ahead of the market, to its recent high on Feb. 12, the ETF was up 357% for 2020. Over that time period, the S&P 500 was up just 62.5%. In other words, ARKG beat the wider markets by 471%.
Its five-year record is every bit as impressive: ARKG has gained 431% over the period.
As impressive as genomics' performance is, tech is a "big tent" investing discipline. I'm looking in other corners of the market, too - one in which the technological shifts of what I call the "5G Aftershock" could potentially bring 20 companies 1,000% gains within eight months. To be clear, I'm not talking about investing in 5G - I think that ship has sailed - but the $1.4 trillion "aftershock" market it could help create. I think the projected profit potential could dwarf anything 5G did on its own. Here are the details...
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About the Author
Michael A. Robinson is a 36-year Silicon Valley veteran and one of the top tech and biotech financial analysts working today. That's because, as a consultant, senior adviser, and board member for Silicon Valley venture capital firms, Michael enjoys privileged access to pioneering CEOs, scientists, and high-profile players. And he brings this entire world of Silicon Valley "insiders" right to you...
- He was one of five people involved in early meetings for the $160 billion "cloud" computing phenomenon.
- He was there as Lee Iacocca and Roger Smith, the CEOs of Chrysler and GM, led the robotics revolution that saved the U.S. automotive industry.
- As cyber-security was becoming a focus of national security, Michael was with Dave DeWalt, the CEO of McAfee, right before Intel acquired his company for $7.8 billion.
This all means the entire world is constantly seeking Michael's insight.
In addition to being a regular guest and panelist on CNBC and Fox Business, he is also a Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer and reporter. His first book Overdrawn: The Bailout of American Savings warned people about the coming financial collapse - years before the word "bailout" became a household word.
Silicon Valley defense publications vie for his analysis. He's worked for Defense Media Network and Signal Magazine, as well as The New York Times, American Enterprise, and The Wall Street Journal.
And even with decades of experience, Michael believes there has never been a moment in time quite like this.
Right now, medical breakthroughs that once took years to develop are moving at a record speed. And that means we are going to see highly lucrative biotech investment opportunities come in fast and furious.
To help you navigate the historic opportunity in biotech, Michael launched the Bio-Tech Profit Alliance.
His other publications include: Strategic Tech Investor, The Nova-X Report, Bio-Technology Profit Alliance and Nexus-9 Network.