Cathie Wood recently purchased Teladoc Health (TDOC +0.67%) in multiple exchange-traded funds (ETFs) run by the famous investor. In this video from Motley Fool Live, recorded on May 10, Fool.com contributors Brian Orelli and Keith Speights discuss prospects for the telehealth leader and why Wood appears to love the company so much.
Brian Orelli: Cathie Wood went shopping last week, adding Teladoc to three of its funds, ARK Genomic Revolution ETF (ARKG +0.40%), the ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK +0.45%), and the ARK Next Generation Internet (ARKW +0.46%). Seems like quite an endorsement of Teladoc.
Keith Speights: It is a big endorsement. Cathie Wood clearly really likes Teladoc. She's putting her money where her mouth is by scooping up shares for several of her ETFs. Now, keep in mind, this stock has fallen nearly 50%. I haven't seen where it is this morning, but the stock has fallen nearly 50% from its high set earlier this year. I just think Cathie Wood sees this as a great opportunity to buy Teladoc at a discount or at least a bigger discount than what she's been able to buy it in the past.
I do think the stock is a great fit for the ARK Innovation ETF, is a great fit for Cathie Wood's ARK Next-Generation Internet ETF. The one I'm not so sure about is the ARK Genomic Revolution ETF. If you look at that ETF and see what they state their objective is, they say that it focuses on companies that, I'm going to read this, "incorporating technological and scientific developments and advancements in genomics into their businesses."
Now, maybe Cathie Wood knows something about Teladoc's future plans that I don't, Brian, but as far as I know, Teladoc isn't doing anything really on the genomic front. Again, maybe there's something I'm just not aware of. But I do agree that Teladoc looks like a great stock to buy for long-term investors, including those not named Cathie Wood.
The market opportunity for virtual care is huge. I saw McKinsey and Company, which is a global consulting firm, projects a $250 billion U.S.-alone virtual care market post-pandemic. They could be wrong, but even if they are way off, that's a huge market, considering Teladoc is looking to make around $500 million this year, and they are the leader in virtual care, so they are the biggest player. I think there's just a massive growth opportunity, and not just in the U.S. I think there are lots of international opportunities as well. I think Cathie Wood is making a good move buying Teladoc right now.
Orelli: I don't know with the genomic one may be that she's hoping that telehealth will increase the amount of genomic tests or something like that.
Speights: Yeah.
Orelli: You could draw a weak reason for her to get in there.
Speights: Maybe so. I think Teladoc Health is the number 1 holding in that ARK Genomic Revolution ETF. Hey, maybe they just don't have super tight guidelines, and if there's a stock that even loosely fits, they buy it.
Orelli: Yeah. I mean, at least it's healthcare.
Speights: Yeah.
