As the presidential race continues to heat up, Democratic contender and former Vice President Joe Biden has come out in support of decriminalizing cannabis — but not of full legalization. “Nobody should be in jail for smoking marijuana,” he said.
While it was a big step for someone who had been opposed to cannabis for three decades, it still remains a half-step.
In the words of the cannabis writer Bruce Barcott: “By embracing decriminalization, Biden takes what many in the drug reform community consider the coward’s way out … these half-steps leave law enforcement free to continue the racially biased policing tactics, using marijuana as a pretext to stop people of color as they go about their business.”
A myriad of cannabis-related bills were submitted in the House of Representatives, most of them aimed at protecting certain groups using medical marijuana, from military veterans to students.
Leafly released a report looking into the impact of dispensary openings on crime rates and property values. Benzinga broke this story with a write-up by Leafly’s California bureau chief David Downs.
“The vast majority of current research suggests that allowing regulated cannabis stores actually improves community safety, health and property values,” he said.
On the markets front, we saw some of the biggest cannabis companies in the world report their quarterly results.
CannTrust Holdings Inc (NYSE: CTST) posted quarterly revenue of CA$16.9 million ($18.9 million), up 115 percent from the first quarter of 2018. Sixty-seven percent of the growth came from the medical channel, while 33 percent came from its recreational arm.
Tilray Inc (NASDAQ: TLRY) posted an adjusted loss of 27 cents per share, in line with consensus estimates, on sales of $23.04 million. Revenue surged by 195 percent on the year and was considerably above analyst estimates of $20.16 million. CEO Brendan Kennedy told CNBC: “You are going to see some daily volatility, but our objective is to invest for the long-term.”
Aurora Cannabis Inc (NYSE: ACB) reported deep losses on a year-over-year basis and net sales of CA$65.145 million ($48.4 million) versus $16.1 million in sales in the third quarter of 2018.
Aurora said it lost CA$158.35 million in the first quarter, down from the second-quarter loss of CA$237.75 million but up 724 percent from its CA$19.2-million loss one year ago. Executive Chairman Michael Singer said getting to positive EBITDA would be a “game-changer.” Options traders made some big moves following the earnings report. The largest trades suggest the Aurora rally could soon run out of steam.
“I believe cannabis investors are starting to expect execution from the industry. Companies have been on an acquisition and going public binge, which has proven to be expensive,” Green Market Report CEO Debra Borchardt told Benzinga.
“Now shareholders want to see revenues rising and losses declining. Patience will begin to wear thin as we move through the quarters this year.”
Finally, we learned that Jakob Ripshtein, President of Aphria Inc (NYSE: APHA), will resign from the company June 7 amid a wide management reshuffle.
