Cathie Wood-led Ark Investment Managementdumped all of its stakein Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc in tranches this month, shedding nearly 2 million shares in the space tourism company and missing out on a rocket-like rally.
What Happened:Virgin Galactic shares have soared about 35.4% since Ark's first SPCE trade this month on May 6.
Between May 6 and May 25, Wood's hedge fund has sold about 1.96 million shares.
An average price of $18.78 per share is estimated based on the closing price of each of these trading days, fetching the investment firm about $36.77 million.
The same shares would be worth $52.85 million as per Thursday's closing price, implying Ark missed out on about $16 million in gains on the stock.
Why It Matters:The investment firm held the shares of the Richard Branson-founded company via the Ark Autonomous Technology & Robotics ETF(BATS:ARKQ) and the recently floated Ark Space Exploration & Innovation ETF(BATS:ARKX).
The space tourism company over the weekend announced ithad completedits third spaceflight and the first-ever spaceflight from Spaceport America, New Mexico bringing it one step closer to the commercial launch of its space services.
SPCE competes with Blue Origin, the privately held space venture founded by Amazon.com Inc CEO Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk-led SpaceX.
The popular fund, known for its investment in Tesla Inc and the recent bets on cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global Inc , started diluting Virgin Galactic stake last month after an initialbullishstreak.
Branson last monthsoldnearly $150 million worth of shares of the space tourism company and still holds 56.8 million shares in Virgin Galactic.
Price Action:SPCE shares closed 5.55% higher at $27 on Wednesday.