While federal changes are still slow to come, state-level legislation is creating significant new opportunities for cannabis investors.
Here’s a recap of the top newsmakers and deals that caught our eyes here at Investor Intelligence this week.
High times in Colorado
If you missed this week’s executive webcast with Viridian Capital Advisors, well, you missed a lot.
Our partners at Viridian offered a fantastic review and analysis of key market trends unfolding through the first quarter this year as well as some predictions on which sectors could see even more growth in the second half of the year.
One key item that stood out: The recent rule changes in Colorado to allow out-of-state investors has already sparked a flurry of investment activity. Viridian is actively overseeing deals in the state – which is home to some of the United States’ oldest legal cannabis operations and largest by revenue.
“They may not be in 10 or 15 different countries, like some of the Canadian (licensed producers), but in many, they could have a dozen or two dozen operations, with healthy double-digit revenues per quarter … and healthy positive EBITDA,” said Harrison Phillips, vice president at Viridian.
“Acquirers can really go in and find the largest or the best run and the most profitable. I think we’ll see a similar dynamic happen when federal laws come down and much larger businesses start to significantly enter the cannabis space.”
Positive EBITDA! You heard it here first.
But there’s more. These top Colorado operators have another attractive quality that should appeal highly to investors or acquirers, according to Viridian.
We’ll let you discover that when you check out the webcast recording.
Curated with you in mind: Other top stories worth your time
- Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday signed a recreational marijuana legalization bill into law, paving the way for the creation of a potential $2 billion market with strong business opportunities. With that signature, Illinois becomes the first state in the country to legalize retail sales through its Legislature and the 11th overall to approve adult use.
- Chart: The number of financial institutions actively banking marijuana-related businesses in the United States is rising, but the true number is far fewer than U.S. Treasury data indicates, according to this analysis.
- High Times Holding Corp., the parent company of the iconic High Times cannabis magazine, fell well short of its $50 million equity raise target and will aim for a listing on the OTC markets as opposed to the Nasdaq.
We’re taking next week off from this weekly wrapup to enjoy the Independence Day holiday, but we’ll be back the following week.
With that, enjoy the weekend!
Sincerely,
Lisa Bernard-Kuhn
Editor, Investor Intelligence
