Cathie Wood's Bold Bargain Hunt: FIG, CRWV, RXRX Analysis
💡 Key Takeaway
Cathie Wood is betting on beaten-down growth stocks, but only FIG and CRWV show fundamental strength while RXRX remains highly speculative.
Wood's Contrarian Shopping Spree
Cathie Wood's Ark Invest made significant additions to three battered growth stocks on Friday: Figma (FIG), CoreWeave (CRWV), and Recursion Pharmaceuticals (RXRX). All three companies have experienced dramatic declines from their 2025 peaks, with FIG down 82%, CRWV down 52%, and RXRX down 72% from their respective highs.
The buying activity came during a particularly volatile trading day where two of the three stocks plummeted more than 8%. Wood's moves represent a classic contrarian approach, scooping up shares of companies that have fallen out of favor with the broader market but still align with her long-term growth investment philosophy.
Figma, a cloud-based design platform, has been caught in the broader SaaS sell-off as investors worry about AI disruption. The stock now trades below its $33 IPO price despite having traded as high as $143 last summer. CoreWeave, an AI infrastructure provider, has also retreated significantly from its summer highs.
Recursion Pharmaceuticals presents the most complex story, with Nvidia recently completely exiting its $50 million stake in the company. Despite this high-profile departure, the stock showed resilience by recovering from an initial 12% drop to close with a 2% gain on the news day.
Reading Between the Bargain Lines
Wood's purchases matter because they signal conviction in specific growth narratives despite market pessimism. For FIG and CRWV, the investments appear grounded in improving fundamentals, while RXRX represents a higher-risk bet on biotech disruption.
Figma's recent quarterly results showed surprising strength with 40% revenue growth beating guidance of 35%. More importantly, the company's net dollar retention rate hit 136%, the highest in over two years, suggesting strong customer loyalty and expansion potential. The stock has already shown signs of life with five consecutive days of gains.
CoreWeave benefits from the insatiable demand for AI infrastructure. With trailing revenue having tripled and analysts expecting the business to more than double in 2026, the company operates in a sweet spot of the AI revolution. Its large order backlog provides visibility into future growth.
Recursion presents the biggest question mark. While the AI-driven drug discovery story remains compelling, the company has failed to grow revenue significantly since Nvidia's initial investment three years ago. Losses have widened substantially, making this the riskiest of Wood's three bets.
Bobby Insight
Selective optimism: FIG and CRWV show promise, but avoid RXRX until clearer growth emerges.
Wood's FIG and CRWV purchases align with improving fundamentals and strong market positioning, making them reasonable contrarian bets. However, RXRX lacks the revenue growth and financial stability to justify its risk profile, even at discounted prices. The market's skepticism toward growth stocks creates opportunity, but stock selection remains critical.
What This Means for Me
