Welcome back to our weekly series, Schaeffer's Cannabis Stock News Update, where we recap what happened in the world of marijuana stocks last week and look ahead to how the cannabis industry continues to take shape in 2021.
Investor interest in the cannabis industry is growing at an explosive rate, and the leading players continue to break through legal barrier after legal barrier, especially in the United States. More than 40 U.S. states legalized recreational and/or medical marijuana by the end of 2020. Now, more and more companies are starting to see the opportunity in cannabis cultivation, marketing, distribution, and technology.
In U.S. cannabis news this week, Louisiana's House of Representatives approved a cannabis-related legislative bill on May 12 after a 67 to 25 vote, removing jail time for low-level cannabis possession offenses. House Bill 652 was first unanimously approved by the House Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice last week. It will now be sent to the Louisiana Senate for review.
Looking at the worldwide cannabis market news this week, the Chinese government announced that all synthetic cannabinoids will be added to the list of banned drugs on May 11. Synthetic cannabinoids are manufactured chemicals that target the same receptors in the brain as the natural cannabinoids in marijuana. This is the second time that China has banned an entire category of substances, following the veto of fentanyl-related drugs in 2019.
Here is a quick roundup of major cannabis stock news this week:
Akerna Corp (NASDAQ:KERN) released its financial and operational results for the third quarter of fiscal 2021 on May 10. Akerna’s fiscal third quarter revenue rose 31% to $4 million along with a quarterly earnings per share in the negative at -$0.28.
Applied DNA Sciences (NASDAQ:APDN) reported its financial and operational results for the third quarter of fiscal 2021 on May 13. APDN posted a quarterly loss of $0.33 per share versus the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $0.18. This compares to a loss of $0.79 per share one year ago.
Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARNA) announced on May 12 that Arena has been designated Prime in the ISS ESG Corporate Rating, effective as of May 4. Companies are classified as Prime when their ESG performance exceeds the threshold criteria for companies in their sector, meaning they fulfill ambitious absolute performance requirements.
Aurora Cannabis Inc. (NYSE:ACB), the Canadian company defining the future of cannabinoids worldwide, released its financial and operational results for the third quarter of fiscal 2021 on May 13. Total cannabis net revenue excluding provisions was reported at $58.4 million marking a 20.3% decline year-over-year. The total cannabis net loss including provisions was posted at $24.0 million for Q3 compared to the prior year's loss of $49.6 million. Before the open on May 14, ACB was down 5.1%.
Cara Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:CARA), a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing new chemical entities designed to alleviate pruritus by selectively targeting KOR, reported its financial results and operational highlights for the first quarter on May 10. Cara Therapeutics’ total revenue was $1.9 million for Q1 of 2021, compared to $8.1 million reported for Q1 of 2020.
cbdMD, Inc. (NYSE:YCBD), one of the nation's leading and most highly trusted and recognized cannabidiol (CBD) brands, announced its financial results and its business highlights for its second quarter on May 12. cbdMD’s net sales of $11.8 million for the second quarter of 2021 marked an increase of 26% year-over-year from $9.4 million in the second quarter of 2020. This quarter’s net sales set a record high YCBD. Operational losses decreased by 25.6% to $4.1 million for the second quarter of 2021 compared to $5.6 million from Q2 of 2020.
Corbus Pharmaceuticals Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRBP), a clinical-stage drug development company pioneering transformative medicines that target the endocannabinoid system, reported financial results for the first quarter of 2021 on May 13. CRBP reported a net loss of approximately $16.1 million, or a net loss per diluted share of $0.14, for Q1 of 2021, compared to a net loss of approximately $29.7 million, or a net loss per diluted share of $0.43, for Q1 of 2020.
GrowGeneration Corp. (NASDAQ:GRWG), the largest chain of specialty hydroponic and organic garden centers with 53 locations across 12 states, reported record first-quarter 2021 on May 12, 2021, revenues of $90 million, versus $33 million in the same period last year. GRWG’s net income was $6.1 million, or $0.10 per share, based on a fully diluted weighted average share count of 60.3 million.
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's cannabis lifestyle brand, Houseplant, launched in the U.S. on May 12 with three different strains and a line of innovative home goods. It should be noted that, while the Houseplant has a partnership with Canopy Growth Corp (NASDAQ: CGC) in Canada, Houseplant is operating independently in the U.S. While the home goods are shipping nationwide, the cannabis itself is only available in California, at a few select dispensaries. The cannabis products launched include the following: Diablo Wind (Sativa), Pancake Ice (Sativa), and Pink Moon (Indica).
HEXO Corp. (NYSE:HEXO) announced its partnership with REQ, a leader in digital marketing and brand reputation, on May 13. HEXO also announced that it has created an at-the-market (ATM) equity program by which it could issue and sell up to $124 million of its shares on May 11. Under the ATM program, shares can be sold from treasury to public, from time to time at the company's discretion.
Organigram Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:OGI) announced the appointment of Borna Zlamalik as the Vice President of Innovation on May 10. Zlamalik will assume his new role effective immediately.
Sundial Growers Inc. (NASDAQ:SNDL) reported its financial and operational results for the first quarter of 2021 on May 11. Earnings reported from operations of $1.7 million compared to a loss from $32.7 million last quarter. A reported net loss of $134.4 million for SNDL resulted from $130.0 million of non-cash amounts reflecting the impact of share price volatility on accounting valuation of derivative warrants.
Village Farms International, Inc. (NASDAQ:VFF) announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2021 on May 11. Total revenue for VFF increased to $52.4 million, up by 62% YOY.
Zynerba Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZYNE), the leader in innovative pharmaceutically-produced transdermal cannabinoid therapies for rare and near-rare neuropsychiatric disorders, reported financial results on May 12 for the first quarter of 2021. ZYNE’s net loss for the first quarter of 2021 was $8.0 million, with a basic and diluted loss per share of -$0.20.
Flora Growth Corp. (NASDAQ:FLGC), a Colombia-based cannabis cultivator and producer, announced its initial public offering price on May 11, consisting of 3,333,333 common stock shares. A high-end proposed price range of $5 per share to the public would net the company $16,666,665 in funds. Flora's common stock went live on the Nasdaq Capital Market on Tuesday, with the offering closed on May 13.