American Cannabis Operator Index Outperforms the Broad Sector Again

The American Cannabis Operator Index fell again for the eighth consecutive month but managed to outperform the broader cannabis sector again, declining 6.9% to 44.22:

In Q4, the index has declined 12.6% compared to a sharper drop in the Global Cannabis Stock Index, which has declined 21.9% on the back of weakness among Canadian licensed producers. The index, which launched at the end of October 2018 with a value of 100, reached a closing high of 124.16 a week later before declining to 70.64 in late December. In 2019, it rallied as high as 119.53 in early April before selling off over the balance of the year. This past month, it ended 7.2% above the 2019 low set on November 19th at 41.27 and is now down 42.8% in 2019:

During November, the index included 23 companies, including 19 multi-state operators (MSOs) and 4 focused solely on CBD extracted from industrial hemp. Several MSOs are pursuing CBD strategies apart from their state-licensed cannabis businesses. 7 companies managed double-digit gains, while 11 posted double-digit losses, including 6 that lost more than 25% of their value:

The four best performing stocks were TILT Holdings (CSE: TILT) (OTC: TLLTF), Trulieve (CSE: TRUL) (OTC: TCNNF), Curaleaf Holdings (CSE: CURA) (OTC: CURLF) and Liberty Health Sciences (CSE: LHS) (OTC: LHSIF). TILT Holdings reported Q3 revenue of C$46.1 million with improved profitability and was able to raise capital during the month. Trulieve maintained its position as the MSO with the leading revenue at $70.7 million as it delivered substantial operating profits. Curaleaf Holdings saw Q3 revenue jump 27% sequentially to $61.8 million. Liberty  extended gains from last month, when it reported fiscal Q2 financials that showed 93% sequential revenue growth and improved profitability.

The four worst performing stocks were MedMen (CSE: MMEN) (OTC: MMNFF), CV Sciences (OTC: CVSI), Elixinol Global (ASX: ELLXF) (OTC: ELLXF) and MariMed (OTC: MRMD). MedMen plunged  mid-month after announcing layoffs and a plan to achieve profitability. Its fiscal Q1 showed sequential revenue growth of only 5% as losses declined only modestly. CV Sciences and Elixinol Global suffered from revenue declines in Q3 as well as the FDA statement regarding CBD safety late in the month. MariMed was late to file its financials but did so as the month ended, with revenue falling sharply from the prior quarter.

For December, the number of names in the index will remain at 23.  Elixinol Global, Plus Products (CSE: PLUS) OTC: PLPRF) and SLANG Worldwide (CSE: SLNG) (OTC: SLGWF) were removed due to not meeting the trading volume requirement, while Halo Labs (NEO: HALO) (OTC: AGEEF) and Vireo Health (CSE: VREO) (OTC: VREOF) return and Flower One (CSE: FONE) (OTC: FLOOF) joins for the first time.

In the next monthly review, we will summarize the performance for December and discuss any additions or deletions. Be sure to bookmark the page to stay current on American cannabis operators stock price movements within the day or from day-to-day.

Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as founder of online communities 420 Investor, the first and still largest due diligence platform focused on the publicly-traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. At New Cannabis Ventures, he is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before shifting his focus to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst following over two decades in research and portfolio management. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 at Seeking Alpha, where he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and a frequent source to the media, including the NY Times, the Wall Street Journal, Fox Business, and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email