Cannabis stocks lower after Green Organic Dutchman’s earnings disappoint

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Cannabis stocks moved lower Wednesday, as investors scrutinized earnings from Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. and awaited a U.S. congressional committee vote next week on protecting banks that serve the sector.

Korey Bauer, Portfolio Manager of the Cannabis Growth Fund CANNX, -0.67% a mutual fund recently launched by Foothill Capital Management, said the market is likely taking a breather after a strong run-up.

“We’re up more than 50% for the year, so it’s not a surprise to see the market take a break,” he said.

Earnings from Green Organic and from Tilray earlier this week are not showing anything that has caught anyone off guard, but investors are looking to the future, he said.

“The market will only give these companies so much time before they need to produce results, though, and at that point, we’ll see winners and losers emerge, because right now we have some insane valuations.”

Green Organic Dutchman TGODF, -7.52% TGOD, -7.48%  posted 2018 earnings late Tuesday that showed its first revenue ever alongside wider losses. The Ontario-based company said it had revenue of C$1.9 million ($1.4 million) that was booked in the fourth quarter, following the acquisition of HemPoland on Oct. 1 and full legalization of cannabis in Canada on Oct. 17.

The company did not provide a net loss for the quarter, but said its loss from operations came to C$18.1 million due to the costs of ramping up operations, consumer research and administration related to gearing up for commercial production in 2019.

The company’s full-year loss came to C$45.2 million, or 21 cents a share, wider than the C$13.5 million loss, or 12 cents a share, posted in the year-earlier period. There are no consensus estimates for the company on FactSet. It ended the year with C$263.5 million of cash, which will be used to fund expansion and international growth.

Jefferies analyst Owen Bennett said the revenue number was slightly lower than expected, but that costs came in “significantly below estimates.” Sales, general and administrative costs and R&D costs came in at C$11 million, well below his estimate of C$21 million.

“You could take a positive or negative view of this (encouraging re route to profitability or not spending much around brand awareness),” he wrote in a note to clients. “First real financial catalyst will be next quarter with further re-rating potential if they execute.”

Bennett rates the stock a buy with a price target of C$6.10, compared with its current trading level of C$5.48. U.S.-listed shares fell 7.3% in early trade.

The House Financial Services Committee will vote next week on a bipartisan bill that aims to offer protections for banks that operate in the cannabis sector, as reported by Marijuana Moment, a website that works with activists, industry representatives and policy makers on trends affecting cannabis.

The bill currently has 138 co-sponsors, or more than a quarter of the House, said the site.

“For six years, Congress has failed to act on the issue of cannabis banking, putting thousands of employees, businesses and communities at risk,” Rep. Ed Perlmutter, a Colorado Democrat and one of four chief sponsors of the bill, said in a statement emailed to Marijuana Moment. “However, the issue is finally receiving the attention it deserves with the first-ever congressional hearing and now a scheduled committee vote.”

A research report from consumer data company MRI-Simmons found that of the 36 million Americans that are cannabis consumers, 10% use CBD products, or those that use the non-psychoactive ingredient that is held to have wellness properties.

Of the 3,000 people surveyed, half said they use CBD for medical purposes only, 42% said they use if for medical and recreational use and 8% said they use it for recreational use only. One third said they are actively working to promote legalization.

“The CBD consumer is both more mainstream and more politically engaged than the average cannabis consumer,” said Michael Panebianco, Vice President of Sales at MRI-Simmons. “They advocate for the legalization of cannabis, even though some are hesitant about actually consuming it.”

Valens GroWorks shares VGWCF, -5.18%  fell 5.6%, after the company announced a $30 million bought deal financing with AltaCorp Caital Inc. AltaCorp agreed to buy 10,2 million units of the company for C$2.95 per unit, on behalf of a syndicate that includes GMP Securities, Raymond James, Haywood Securities and Mackie Research Capital Corp.

Elsewhere in the sector, Canopy Growth Corp. stock CGC, +1.65% WEED, +1.55%  was up 2.5% and Cronos Group Inc. CRON, -1.02%  was up 0.6%. Aleafia health Inc. ALEF, -0.44% ALEF, -0.44%  was up 5.8% and CannTrust Holdings Inc. was up 0.5%. OrganiGram Holdings Inc. OGRMF, +4.30%  was up 1.9%. TilrayTLRY, +1.35%  tacked on 1.1%.

The rest of the sector was lower. Hexo Corp. HEXO, -3.17% HEXO, -2.72%  was down 0.4% and Aurora Cannabis Inc. ACB, -1.51% ACB, -1.44%  was down 0.8%.

The Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences ETF HMMJ, -1.65% was down 1.1% and the ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF MJ, -0.96%  was down 1.2%.

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