The stock market is not in a bubble as tech innovation drives rapid growth, according to Cathie Wood
- The US stock market is not in a bubble, Ark Invest's Cathie Wood said at an investment conference on Wednesday.
- She pointed to rapid growth rates for various technological innovations that Ark Invest specializes in.
- Wood said she expects Ark Invest's flagship fund to compound at an annual growth rate of 30%.
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Despite near-record levels in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, the stock market is not in a bubble. That's according to Ark Invest's Cathie Wood, who argued at a Morningstar investment conference on Wednesday that there is more growth ahead for stocks.
"We are not in a bubble, that I know," Wood said. Much of that belief is based on the expected rapid growth of various technological innovation platforms that Ark Invest specializes in, including electric vehicles, robotics, and artificial intelligence, among others.
"I do believe the market is beginning to understand how profound some of these platform opportunities are, and how sustained and rapid the growth rates are going to be," Wood said, adding that many of these technologies are converging.
That convergence applies to Tesla, which according to Wood is benefiting from the rapid innovation in energy storage, AI, and robotics. In fact, she reiterated her bullish view on Tesla, but said if the stock reaches its 5-year price target of $3,000 in the next year, Ark Invest would begin to sell the stock. Tesla traded around $754 on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 has more than doubled from its COVID-19 pandemic low reached in March of 2020, and nearly all valuation metrics are hitting nosebleed levels. The S&P 500 trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 20.9x, well above its respective 5-year and 10-year averages of 18.2x and 16.3x, according to data from FactSet.
But those high valuation metrics aren't dimming Wood's outlook for strong gains in Ark Invest's flagship disruptive innovation fund. She expects the ARKK ETF to post a 30% compound annual rate of return going forward. The ARKK ETF is down 5% year-to-date.