Cathie Wood Buys $82M of Rocket Lab and Block in ARK Shift

Cathie Wood is using the latest growth-stock pullback to make a concentrated bet on two very different parts of the innovation trade.

ARK Invest bought about $44.5 million of Rocket Lab and $37.4 million of Block, putting roughly $82 million into commercial space and fintech while simultaneously reducing positions in Palantir and AMD. The trades suggest more than opportunistic dip-buying: ARK is shifting capital toward companies with major execution catalysts still ahead.

The Rocket Lab purchases totaled 705,102 shares across Aug. 31 and Sept. 1, according to ARK trading disclosures cited by Yahoo Finance. The buying came after RKLB had fallen roughly 58% from its May 27 closing high of $150.23 to the low-$60s.

At the same time, ARK bought 456,059 Block shares across ARKK, ARKW and ARKF, worth about $37.4 million based on Monday’s trading levels.

Rocket Lab offers a much cheaper SpaceX alternative

Rocket Lab’s attraction is increasingly about more than launch.

Its latest quarterly results showed record Q2 revenue of $234 million, up 62% year over year, while backlog reached a record $2.36 billion. The company also said it had secured more than $437 million of additional launch contracts across Electron, HASTE and Neutron.

The larger catalyst is Neutron, Rocket Lab’s medium-lift rocket intended to compete more directly with SpaceX’s Falcon 9. Management is targeting delivery to the launch pad in the fourth quarter of 2026, though the vehicle has not yet completed its first flight.

That execution risk helps explain why RKLB has fallen so sharply even as the business expands.

ARK’s interest also comes as SpaceX’s valuation has climbed above $1 trillion, while Rocket Lab’s market value is only a fraction of that size.

Block gives ARK a second bet on Bitcoin and payments

Block offers a different version of the same risk-reward trade.

ARK’s $37.4 million purchase came after Block shares weakened, even though the Jack Dorsey-led company had just reported $3.17 billion of Q2 gross profit, up 25%, and lifted its full-year 2026 gross-profit outlook to $12.51 billion.

Block combines Square, Cash App, Afterpay and several Bitcoin businesses, giving ARK exposure to both digital payments and crypto infrastructure.

The purchase also marked a reversal from earlier periods when ARK had trimmed Block while reallocating capital toward Circle and other crypto-linked names. Its prior Circle buying showed the same willingness to rotate aggressively inside the fintech and digital-asset sector.

ARK sold about 139,456 Palantir shares worth roughly $26 million on Aug. 31 and also reduced AMD exposure, reinforcing the impression that Wood is reallocating rather than simply increasing overall risk.

That portfolio churn is familiar. ARK has repeatedly trimmed winning positions, including Bitcoin ETF shares, while adding to companies it believes are temporarily mispriced.

The key question is whether Rocket Lab and Block can now justify the conviction.

Rocket Lab still needs Neutron to deliver, while Block must convert stronger Cash App growth and aggressive restructuring into sustained earnings expansion. For Wood, the recent weakness appears to be an opportunity rather than a warning.