Cut the cord on cable yet? While some might suggest that the new streaming regime is just another version of the costly cable bundles of yesteryear, some hardware platforms like Roku (ROKU) are transforming the role of streaming in American homes. The company hit a notable milestone recently, which investors can play in an active internet ETF like the ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW).
Starting back in 2008, the company’s Roku devices were one of the first streaming players available, now in their tenth generation. While the company’s stock struggled last year, recent news has seen its price spike 9.8% over the last five days, revealing Thursday last week that it had surpassed 70 million active accounts around the world. The 70 million number represents a 16.4% increase year-over-year from 60.1 million active accounts.
The company also made news at CES 2023 last week, with a lineup of its own TVs debuting this year with streaming first features. That hardware news adds to existing partnerships with a variety of hardware manufacturers like TCL. Commentary from ARK Invest suggests that ROKU will not need to invest much more than historically has been required for TV manufacturers given its experience. The two TVs, the Roku Select and Roku Plus, will come in eleven models and retail at prices from $119 to $999.
ARKW has the highest weight towards ROKU among all ETFs, according to VettaFi, with an almost 7% weight. The active internet ETF lists ROKU as its third-highest weight, investing actively in firms set to benefit from advances in cloud computing, big data, AI, social platforms, and more. Charging 88 basis points, the ETF offers investors the opportunity to invest in long-term disruptive innovation in the industry and ETF including other interesting names like Shopify (SHOP) and Block, Inc. (SQ).
It wasn’t the easiest year last year for the tech names that jumped to life as so many Americans switched to a remote work environment and mindset during the pandemic, but the industry is still innovating and could present an appealing opportunity for investors in an ETF like ARKW.
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