Sessions at MJBizCon’s Passholder Days were devoted to the Canadian market, with topics ranging from the role of small producers to global opportunities for Canadian companies to roundtable discussions about retail, processing and cultivation. It’s all available to you on demand.
Major Canadian marijuana producer Aurora Cannabis reported a slight quarterly revenue increase during its first fiscal quarter, despite an adjusted EBITDA loss of 57.9 million Canadian dollars ($44.7 million) as the company worked through its transition plan.
Net revenue was CA$67.8 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30, and Aurora’s quarterly net loss was CA$109.5 million.
The Alberta-headquartered company said it plans to achieve positive adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter.
Aurora’s Canadian recreational cannabis revenue shrank by 3% on a quarterly basis to CA$34.3 million.
CEO Miguel Martin struck an optimistic tone on a Monday morning conference call, highlighting overall growth in Canada’s adult-use market and consumers “(demonstrating) very dynamic tendencies, with market share moving very quickly between brands unlike in more stable (consumer packaged goods) categories.”
“This provides us with a great opening for our pivot to premium brands,” he said.
Martin added that Aurora’s Canadian recreational strategy is focused on:
- Driving sales of premium flower brands.
- Increasing market share of “key growth formats,” including vape products, pre-rolls, edibles and concentrates.
- Aligning production costs with sales and shifting from fixed-cost production to variable-cost production.
Medical cannabis net revenue, including international medical marijuana income, increased 4% from the previous quarter to CA$33.5 million.
Aurora attributed that growth to strong international medical growth and “consistent performance” in Canada’s medical marijuana market, where the company said it holds a first-place position in terms of net revenue.
Aurora recently filed a preliminary short-form base shelf prospectus that will allow it to raise as much as $500 million over 25 months.
“But we are firmly convinced that our focus on getting to cash-flow positive as quickly as possible will both demonstrate the excellent long-term value creation possible in this industry and will alleviate the need for additional equity capital as far as possible,” Chief Financial Officer Glen Ibbott said Monday.
The Edmonton-based firm reported an annual loss of CA$3.3 billion for its 2020 fiscal year, including a CA$1.6 billion write-down.
Aurora trades as ACB on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.
