Acreage Holdings reports disappointing Q4 results, shares still well below implied price for Canopy deal  

U.S. cannabis operator Acreage Holdings reported fourth-quarter results on Wednesday that missed analyst expectations. Acreage reported a steep US$50.5 million loss in its fourth-quarter, while booking US$21.1 million in revenue, which it attributed to regulator delays in opening new cannabis dispensaries in some U.S. states. The company said it plans to save US$7 million in administrative costs in 2020 and hopes to achieve positive EBITDA by the second half of the year. Canaccord Genuity analyst Matt Bottomley said in a research note that Acreage shares still trades about 60 per cent below its implied price to its tentative deal with Canopy Growth. “Although this discount has remained intact for some time, we still believe that future indications or positive sentiment towards federal legalization in the U.S. could result in significant value appreciation for Acreage shareholders should this gap begin to close,” Bottomley said.

U.S. Democratic presidential candidates opine on cannabis legalization during Tuesday night debate 

Cannabis got a shout-out during Tuesday’s U.S. Democratic presidential debate in South Carolina. The topic was raised after a moderator asked Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar her views on legalizing marijuana, something that her rival Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said he’ll do the day he takes office. “It is realistic to want to legalize marijuana. I want to do that too,” Klobuchar said, according to a report in Marijuana Moment. Former New York City Mayor and owner of Bloomberg LP Mike Bloomberg said he’d prefer to decriminalize the possession of cannabis. Meanwhile, Sanders reiterated that his legalization plan is a realistic solution that will help to reform the U.S. criminal justice system which he says equates cannabis with heroin. “That’s insane,” Sanders said. BNN Bloomberg is a content partner of Bloomberg LP.  

Village Farms to sell Pure Sunfarms in Alberta, claims top spot in Ontario  

Village Farms International said its Pure Sunfarms cannabis brand is now available in Alberta, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. The company said its products are now in Canada’s three of Canada's four most populous provinces, which represents about two-thirds of the national consumer market. Interestingly, Village Farms also claimed that its Pure Sunfarms brand is the top performing brand of dried flower on the Ontario Cannabis Store over the fourth-quarter, touting a 13 per cent market share. However, Ontario Cannabis Store market share data is not officially released, and a Village Farms spokesperson declined to provide any source material to BNN Bloomberg to back up their claim. An Ontario Cannabis Store spokesperson declined to comment on Village Farms’ claims.

Montreal public health department releases study on residents’ cannabis usage  

Montreal's public health department released a survey about its residents’ cannabis usage before and after legalization, highlighting that the city appeared to be big fans of the drug even before it was legal. CTV News reports that at least 17 per cent of Montrealers admitted to using marijuana in 2018, the year that cannabis was made legal in Canada, according to the Enquête québécoise sur le cannabis study. Additionally, a majority of respondents that consume cannabis do so about three times a month. The survey also found that that 80 per cent of people in Montreal who consume cannabis prior to it being legal did so while drinking alcohol. The study also said about half of Montrealers said cannabis is socially acceptable, compared to 88 per cent who said the same for alcohol.

MedMen announces Q2 loss, appoints two new independent board members  

U.S. cannabis operator and retailer MedMen Enterprises released its second-quarter results late Wednesday, reporting a US$40.6 million net loss while generating US$44 million in revenue. The company also reported an adjusted EBITDA loss of US$35.1 million despite cutting SG&A costs by 11 per cent in the prior quarter. MedMen, which recently announced its CEO Adam Bierman would step down earlier this month, added two new independent directors to its board – former Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf CEO Mel Elias and health food investor Cameron Smith. The company also noted in its release that it has just $26 million in cash remaining on its balance sheet.

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