The cult of Cathie Wood, plus SPAC-picking tips from a former CEO

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The cult of Cathie Wood, plus SPAC-picking tips from a former CEO
David McNew/AFP via Getty; ARK Invest; Patricia De Melo Moreira/AFP via Getty; Bitcoin; Samantha Lee/Insider

Hello everyone! Welcome to this weekly roundup of Investing stories from deputy editor Joe Ciolli. Please subscribe here to get this newsletter in your inbox every week.

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Hello and welcome to Insider Investing. I'm Joe Ciolli, and I'm here to guide you through what's been happening in markets, as well as what to expect in the coming weeks. Here's what's on the docket:

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Have thoughts on the newsletter? Just want to talk markets? Feel free to drop me a line at jciolli@insider.com or on Twitter @JoeCiolli.

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Your weekly recap/outlook

The CEO of Robinhood, a hedge fund manager who lost 53% in January, a day-trader who made $48 million on GameStop, and Ken Griffin walk into a bar...

No, this is not the beginning of a bad finance joke. It's the actual collection of individuals grilled by Congress on Thursday in a high-profile display of political theater the stock market has rarely experienced before.

Gabe Plotkin - the famed hedge funder who took home $846 million in 2020, then took a massive bath on his GameStop short last month - was asked with a straight face if he's a registered broker. He was later asked if he thought short-selling constituted market manipulation, to which he replied "no" (presumably because it doesn't). Nobody pronounced Vlad Tenev's last name right for five straight hours. Keith Gill (known on YouTube as Roaring Kitty) was mostly ignored. It was nobody's idea of a productive time.

But the sheer fact that the hearing happened at all shows that the Reddit-based day-trader community has everyone's attention, and isn't going anywhere. So what comes next? Despite his lack of air time on Thursday, Gill is still facing significant legal hurdles. Robinhood still has many questions to answer about its operations, its role in "inciting" reckless trading, and just how much money it has under management - not to mention that IPO it's been planning. And only when first-quarter hedge fund filings start to trickle out will we get a full idea of who won and lost during the whole ordeal.

Outside of Reddit mania, the press for more stimulus continued. The timeline for Biden's $1.9 trillion package is looking like mid-March now, and there's still considerable haggling over what exactly will be included. On the economics front, debate is waging over inflation, and whether the sudden fiscal injection will cause prices to overheat. If that happens, it could mean bad news for the Reddit traders riding high on momentum stocks right now - and perhaps an opportunity for a short-seller redemption.

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The cult of Cathie Wood

Cathie Wood, the founder of ARK Invest, has amassed legions of obsessed followers. Wood has become a favorite of the Wall Street Bets crowd, and successfully kept control of her firm. Now, with assets accumulating and new funds coming out, the question is: can she sustain her success?

Read the full story here:

Cathie Wood made a career betting on the future. Insiders reveal how the ARK Invest founder won the funds (and hearts) of memelord traders and boomer investors alike.


Picking SPACs with the former CEO of Barings

Tom Finke is the former CEO of the $345 billion asset manager Barings and a board member of Invesco. He and his partner recently raised $115 million via their SPAC Adara Acquisition Corp. (ADRA). Finke breaks down why he is jumping on the SPAC bandwagon and shares what to look for in SPACs.

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Read the full story here:

Tom Finke recounts how he went from running a $345 billion money manager to joining in the SPAC boom as a sponsor - and shares 3 characteristics investors should look for in an ideal blank-check company


4 real-estate investing trends from a manager who's returned 446% to clients over the past decade

The cult of Cathie Wood, plus SPAC-picking tips from a former CEO
Skye Gould/Insider

Jeff Kolitch has returned 446% to investors via the $1.1 billion Baron Real Estate Fund since 2009. The 29-year veteran investor breaks down the four trends driving the real-estate market in 2021. He also shares 11 "attractively valued" real-estate stocks and their upside potential.

Read the full story here:

A 29-year real-estate veteran who's returned 446% to investors in the past decade breaks down the 4 trends driving the sector in 2021 - and shares 11 'attractively valued' stocks


Stock pick central

Seeking experts who are willing to name names? Look no further:

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