Cathie Wood continues to misjudge opportunities in innovation, prompting investors to look at these stocks

Cathie Wood is the founder and CEO of Ark Invest. Her firm has risen to prominence for its actively managed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that focus on disruptive innovation. Despite the success of some of her ETFs, especially in the early years, its hard to assert that Wood has been correct about innovation stocks. Ark Invest hasdestroyed more than $14 billion in wealthover the past decade.

Woods Ark Invest portfolio has providednegative 16% returns over the past 12 months.Thats especially concerning given theperformance of theS&P 500over the same period, up nearly 25%.

The performance of Ark Invest is less a condemnation of innovation and more so a condemnation of Cathie Woods investment prowess. Innovation has produced AI that is responsible for so much of the strength throughout markets today. Nevertheless, Woods style of innovation investing should prompt investors to consider safer choices that are less dependent on innovation overall.

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Coca-Cola(NYSE:KO) continues to be an all-weather stock that performs well almost regardless of market dynamics. It is one of the least volatile mega-cap stocks with a beta of 0.59. Its also a known consumer staple and a defensive stalwart that provides safety when the broader market enters periodic turmoil.

Coca-Cola, though,isnt simplya boring brand pumping out the same cash cow products year after year.There is innovation occurringwithin the company. Step foot into a convenience store anywhere globally and you will instantly recognize the investment Coca-Cola makes in R&D. The company is constantly experimenting with new flavors and packaging while expanding into new emerging markets.

All of thatcontinued tweaking of the product mix is made possible by highmarginson core products. Coca-Colas invaluable brand drives premium prices that make everything possible.That includes astrongdividend for shareholderswhich is oneof the primary reasons to consider investing.

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Alphabet(NASDAQ:GOOG,GOOGL) iscertainlyan innovative company.And certainlythe poor performance of Cathie Woodshouldnt deter investors from investing in innovation. Yet,Google is really a simple company at its core and not the most innovative firm overall.That makes it a good choicein relation tothis discussion.

Google isessentiallyan advertising company.Most of the innovation associated with Google isgoing onthrough the other bets segmentof the firm. Itsa minor contribution to thesuccess of the company.Google, essentially a search platform, lives and dies byadvertising revenues.

Those ad revenues are primarily driven through the search bar and to a lesser degree through YouTube and the Google Network. Yes, Google does continue to grow its Cloud offering which falls under the umbrella of innovation but its simple ad revenue that drives results.

And thats fine. Its what makes Google so strong when macroeconomic trends become favorable.With rate cuts expected late this yeartheres a reason to believeGoogles ad revenues will continue to strengthen, likely rapidly at the end of the year.

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Exxon Mobil(NYSE:XOM) stock is heavily influenced bythe price of oil.If oil prices rise, Exxon Mobil could see increased profitability andpotentiallya higher stock price. Investors who believe oil prices will rebound could benefit from this.

While thats an obvious statement there is a general sense that peak oil consumption has already occurred and prices will fall.Many bearscontinue to believe that yetING sees pricescontinuing upwardthrough the third quarter.

Its logical to assume that Exxon Mobils share price will rise as a consequence although the correlation is not so simple.

Overall it suggests that ExxonMobil will perform well in the second half of 2024. Investors should also consider that ExxonMobil will continue to perform well as it invests in the newfuture of energy. The company has a history ofstronginvestment performance and tends tocreate value from invested capital.

I hopethat meansthe company can successfully navigate the clean energy transition and produce shareholder returns in the process.

On thedate of publication, Alex Sirois did not have (eitherdirectly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.comPublishing Guidelines.

On thedate of publication, the responsible editor held a long position in GOOG.

Alex Sirois is a freelance contributor to InvestorPlace whose personal stock investing style is focused on long-term, buy-and-hold, wealth-building stock picks. Having worked in several industries from e-commerce to translation to education and utilizing his MBA from George Washington University, he brings a diverse set of skills through which he filters his writing.

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Cathie Wood Was Wrong About Innovation: 3 Stocks to Invest In Instead - InvestorPlace