Akerna predicts that the 420 holiday this year will generate over $130 million legal cannabis sales
Welcome back to our weekly series, Schaeffer's Cannabis Stock News Update, where we recap what happened in the world of marijuana stocks, and look at how the cannabis industry is shaping up as we roll through 2022.
What is going on in marijuana legalization news by state this week? Senator Melissa Agard (D-Madison) called out Republicans for being "all talk and no action" when it comes to cannabis legalization in Wisconsin. New Jersey's Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) finally voted to permit seven of the state’s medical cannabis companies to start sales on Monday. New York Senator Jeremy Cooney introduced two new cannabis bills geared toward improving the cannabis banking industry. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia signed two bills to improve the state's medical marijuana program operations.
In addition, here is a quick summary of the major (and action-worthy!) cannabis stock news from this week:
Lexaria Bioscience (NASDAQ:LEXX) kicked off the week with news that the first phase of its epilepsy research program, EPIL-A21-1, has been initiated. The purpose of this research program will be to compare the seizure-preventing activity of CBD (cannabidiol) when administered to patients using LEXX's DehydraTECH(TM) technology to the resullts of the CBD-based seizure medication, Epidiolex®.
On Monday, Agrify Corporation (NASDAQ:AGFY) signed a definitive agreement with Loud Wellness Inc. for its Agrify Total Turn-Key Solution. Loud Wellness Inc. is a New Jersey-based cultivation and manufacturing operator and, with the New Jersey recreational cannabis market expected to deliver annual sales of $2 billion within just a few years, on the precipice of major growth. The goal is for Loud Wellness to leverage the for its Agrify Total Turn-Key Solution to produce the highest quality product portfolio in the New Jersey cannabis market.
Later in the week, Agrify signed another definitive agreement with BioCann Pharmaceutical Company LDA. At a price of $6.1 million, BioCann will purchase Agrify's VFU cultivation equipment as well as access to Agrify's cultivationn software, Agrify Insights. Because BioCann is located in Portugal, it is well-situated to quickly grow throughout Europe.
A flash report was released by Akerna (NASDAQ:KERN) on Tuesday predicting that April 20 (420), the unofficial cannabis holiday, will bring in over $130 million in legal marijuana sales in the United States alone. If Akerna is accurate in its 16% sales increase prediction, this year's 420 holiday will mark largest sales day in legal cannabis history. Acccording to Akerna's press release, "We are approaching the biggest day for our industry, making it critical for dispensaries to plan promotions, staff, and space for these large upticks in traffic."
Organigram Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:OGI) released its financial results for the second announced its results for the second quarter of its fiscal 2022 year on Tuesday. Year-over-year, OGI reported a 128% increase in gross revenue. Additionally, Organigram achieved positive Adjusted EBITDA two quarters ahead of OGI's initial estimate. Pre-market on Tuesday, OGI was up 10% off this news.
Two major players in the cannabis stock sector, Tilray Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY) and HEXO Corp. (NASDAQ:HEXO) signed a commercial and financial partnership agreement, as announced via press release on April 12. Per the agreement, TLRY will acquire all remaining balance of senior secured convertible note. This agreement will provide Tilray Brands with a major equity ownership position in HEXO. According to Tilray, "We know that winning in Canada means a relentless focus on product innovation and operational excellence. The agreement with HEXO delivers on both fronts as it facilitates collaboration, the sharing of best-practices, and yields quantifiable operating efficiencies between two companies with unparalleled global cannabis expertise."
After the market closed on Wednesday, The Valens Company Inc. (NASDAQ:VLNS) released its first quarter of fiscal 2022 financial results. The major highlight of the reports was a quarter-over-quarter increase of 26.1% in net revenue. Further, VLNS officially made it into the top 10 licensed cannabis producers by market share in Canada.