These Stocks Are Going to the Moon. Should You Invest $1,000?

Industry Overview - The space economy is projected to grow from approximately $630 billion in 2023 to $1.8 trillion by 2035, encompassing technologies such as satellites, launchers, GPS, and broadcast television [1] Investment Opportunity - The Ark Space Exploration & Innovation ETF (ARKX), managed by ARK Invest, offers a way to invest in a diverse range of space-related stocks, focusing on long-term technological shifts [2][3] - The ARKX fund aims for thematic exposure to space exploration, including orbital and sub-orbital aerospace, enabling technologies, and beneficiaries of aerospace activities [3] Fund Performance - The ARKX fund has about $448 million in assets under management and holds 25 different stocks, with the top 10 holdings comprising nearly 64% of the fund [5] - The fund has shown strong performance, being up over 33% since its inception in March 2021, approximately 52% over the past year, and about 38% in 2025, outperforming the S&P 500 index [7] Key Holdings - Major holdings in the ARKX fund include: - Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (10.3%) - Rocket Lab (8.6%) - AeroVironment (8.5%) - L3Harris Technologies (7.2%) - Teradyne (6.4%) [6] Market Dynamics - The growth of space-related stocks is driven by increasing satellite connectivity, demand for positioning and navigation technologies, and the rising use of AI and machine learning [9] - The competitive landscape features significant overlap among firms in technologies, systems, and services, making a diversified ETF like ARKX more appealing [9] Fund Characteristics - The ARKX ETF has an expense ratio of 0.75%, which is relatively high for ETFs, but may be justified by its recent performance [8]