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James B. Francis, CFA
Managing Director of Publicly Traded Securities Research, CRB Monitor

CRB Monitor tracks nearly 1,300 publicly-traded, Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) globally, which have 1,500+ traded securities. We categorize CRBs into our proprietary cannabis risk tier framework and cannabis-based sectors. CRB Monitor also unravels and maintains complex corporate structures, linking publicly-traded parent companies to their underlying operational plant-touching subsidiaries. Custodian banks, broker/dealers, and asset managers find our data essential for pre-trade compliance, risk management, index construction, and portfolio analytics. 

CRB Monitor Securities Updates

Source: CRB Monitor

Cannabis Securities News Highlights 

As investors contemplated the implications of the blockbuster merger between Tier 1B CRB Tilray (NAS: TLRY) and Tier 1A CRB Aphria (TSX: APHA), a new, equally compelling M&A deal emerged in the first few weeks of the year.  Tier 1B Cresco Labs Inc. (CSE: CL) announced their acquisition of Florida-based, vertically-integrated Tier 1B CRB Bluma Wellness Corp. (CSE: BWEL.U), in a deal worth $213 million. Our hunch that the TLRY/APHA deal could just be the beginning of a trend is becoming a reality, as the albeit smaller Cresco/Bluma Wellness acquisition is a significant event, as it indicates Cresco’s desire to expand into new states. This move into Florida gives Cresco a 7-state footprint in addition to the Province of Ontario.

Furthermore, in the announcement Cresco’s acquisition of Bluma Wellness anticipates the long-awaited legalization of adult-use cannabis in Florida, a bill for which was introduced in the Florida House of Representatives in January 2021.

Of the thousands of cannabis security news releases and regulatory filings reviewed in January 2021, our research resulted in a total of 391 updates to the CRB Monitor database (60 updates to issuers’ records, 331 news releases added). The complete list of securities and detail for these updates is available to CRB Monitor Securities database clients, but below are highlights.

Select M&A/Subsidiary Highlights: 

Security/Exchange Highlights:  

Risk Tier/Inclusion Updates in CRB Monitor:

Select New Additions to CRB Monitor:

Cannabis-Linked Equity Performance

January was a celebratory month for cannabis investors, as many CRBs resumed their surge that started in the fourth quarter prior to the November elections. Following December’s apparent round of profit-taking, and amid the chaos surrounding the installation of a new administration in Washington, we witnessed another cannabis-linked rally. Canopy Growth (TSX: WEED), the largest CRB by market capitalization, recovered from its recent negative news as investors pushed its price more than 60% higher in the month of January. This dramatic spike in WEED’s stock price followed the announcement by CEO David Klein that he had revised earnings expectations based on his earlier statement that the US cannabis market would open up at the federal level, due to passage of the MORE Act, as early as 2022.  

Also in strong recovery mode was Cronos Group (TSX: CRON), a company that has not fared well among its competitors, but given balance sheet support to the tune of $1.8 billion from parent company Altria (NYSE: MO), and perhaps a lift from the sector, investors poured their money into CRON stock, which rebounded in January with a breathtaking 49% return for the month. And we are watching the follow-on effects of the merger between Tier 1B CRB Tilray (NAS: TLRY) and Tier 1A CRB Aphria (TSX: APHA), which evidently had investors scrambling to grab a share of this brass ring: In January alone, TLRY was up 120% while APHA returned 76%, an indication that the sentiment surrounding this merger was overwhelmingly positive.  

GW Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: GWPH) rebounded in January as well, having returned a negative 17% in December and prior to the early February of its takeover by Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc (Nasdaq: JAZZ). With the assumption that the market did know about the M&A deal, GW Pharma’s unaudited financials projected better-than expected 4^th Quarter 2020 earnings, and analysts were generally bullish on the company’s near-term strategy. With that said, GWPH stock posted a 32% return for January 2021.

Following its stunning 161% return in 2020, Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (CSE: TRUL) continued to impress in January, posting a 26% return as they enlarged their dispensary footprint in Florida with grand openings in Gainesville, Sebastian, and Summerfield, bringing their total to 73. Analysts are not cooling their jets over Trulieve’s earnings, which are projected to grow significantly in 2021, per Yahoo Finance.  

The CRB Monitor Top 10 Tier 1 cannabis-linked equities started the year up nearly 29% in January on an equally-weighted basis, significantly outperforming major equity indexes (US large cap, International, Emerging Markets), which generally underwhelmed to start the year.

CRB Monitor “Top 10” Tier 1 Cannabis Companies 

Source: CRB Monitor, Sentieo

Source: CRB Monitor, Sentieo

CRBs In the News

We started 2021 with an active month for news related to publicly-traded cannabis companies. The following is a sampling of highlights from the January 2021 cannabis news cycle, as tracked by CRB Monitor.  Included are CRB Monitor’s proprietary Risk Tiers. 

• Jushi Holdings Inc. Expands Retail Footprint in California (Tier 1B)
• American Cannabis Company, Inc. Announces Execution of Non-Binding Letter of Intent for Strategic Acquisition of a 60,000-sq.-ft. Cannabis Cultivation and Extraction Operation in Denver, Colorado (Tier 1A)
• The Valens Company Expands Cannabis 2.0 & 3.0 Footprint with the Acquisition of Leading Canadian Edibles Manufacturer LYF Food Technologies Inc. (Tier 1B)
• Ayr Strategies Moves to Definitive Merger Agreement with Blue Camo, LLC (Tier 1B)
• MJ Holdings, Inc. Announces the Execution of a Letter of Intent to Acquire Cultivation and Production Licenses (Tier 1B)
• Pure Harvest Hemp Names Amanda Bowman Chief Executive Officer (Tier 1A)
• Core One Labs Completes Sale of Non-Core Assets (Tier 1B)
• High Tide Continues to Strengthen U.S. Market Presence Through Acquisition of Leading E-commerce Retailer Smoke Cartel (Tier 1B)
• RISE Life Science Corp. Announces Proposed Transaction with Britannia Life Sciences (Tier 1A)
• AgraFlora Organics Expects to Enter Edibles Market in Q1 (Tier 1B)
• Cannabis Retailer Fire & Flower Continues to Leverage Couche-Tard Partnership as It Considers the U.S. Market (Tier 1B)
• Cannara Biotech Receives Sales Licence from Health Canada (Tier 1B)
• Columbia Care Announces C$130 Million Bought Deal Public Offering (Tier 1A)
• Mountain Valley MD Holdings Announces Application for OTCQB Listing in U.S. (Tier 1B)
• MJardin enters into Supply Agreement for Cannabis Product with the BC Liquor Distribution Branch (Tier 1B)
• Cannabis producer WeedMD shutters Bowmanville, Ontario, facility (Tier 1B)
• Latest Canadian cannabis recalls include melting vape pens, moldy bud (Tier 1B)
• iAnthus Provides Litigation Update on New Jersey Operations, the Recapitalization Transaction and Class Action Complaint (Tier 1B)
• Captor Capital Corp.: One Plant Opens 6500 sq. ft. Cannabis Retail Location in Antioch (Tier 1B)
• Kaya Holdings Touts International Potential After Buying 50% Stake In Athens-Based Greekkannabis (Tier 1B)

Wondering what a Tier 1, Tier 2 or Tier 3 CRB is?

See our seminal ACAMS Today white paper Defining "Marijuana-Related Business" and its update Defining "Cannabis-Related Business"

Interested in learning more about the CRB Monitor Securities Database? Visit our website to request more information and to  get in touch with our team.

The information provided herein presents general information and should not be relied on as legal advice. If you have specific questions regarding a fact, please consult with competent legal counsel about the facts and laws that apply.