General Motors (NYSE:GM) is in the spotlight after Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest purchased shares for the first time since Q4 of 2017. In an interview earlier this month, Wood disclosed that she met with GM CEO Mary Barra. Wood stated that Barra is “really turning that ship around” with her focus on cruise automation. When asked whether Ark would invest in GM, she stated that she is “keeping an open mind.”
Shares of GM stock are down more than 30% year-to-date. With that in mind, let’s go over the details of the purchase.
Cathie Wood Buys GM Stock
Yesterday, the Ark Autonomous Technology & Robotics (BATS:ARKQ) exchange-traded fund (ETF) disclosed purchasing 158,187 shares of GM. After the purchase, GM accounts for 0.51% of ARKQ, making it the 35th-largest position in the ETF out of 39 total. On the same day, the Ark Innovation ETF (NYSEMKT:ARKK) and the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (NYSEMKT:ARKW) disclosed selling 41,754 shares of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA).
It seems Cathie Wood has changed her mind about GM. Back in January, the Ark CEO raised concerns about GM stock’s rally after the automaker debuted its fully electric Silverado truck. She characterized the rally as “ridiculous” because “electric vehicle sales represent only about 2% of traditional automakers’ sales.”
Last November, she even stated that some traditional automakers may go bankrupt in the next five to 10 years due to competition with electric vehicle (EV) companies. However, with GM going all in on an electric future, it seems that Wood has changed her mind.
Meanwhile, GM continues its pivot toward EVs. Over the next few years, the automaker plans on spending $35 billion to invest in electric vehicle development. The company also plans on releasing 30 new EVs by 2025.
GM CFO Paul Jacobson Buys General Motors
Ark isn’t the only notable figure to recently purchase shares of GM. On April 28, CFO Paul Jacobson reported buying 35,000 shares at an average price of $38.79. In total, the purchase amounted to $1.35 million dollars. Afterward, the CFO directly owns 110,000 shares of his own company.
So, how do other insiders feel about their company? According to Nasdaq, insiders have purchased 966,282 shares and sold 1.1 million shares in the past 12 months. In total, the net insider activity amounts to 141,167 shares sold.
On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
