Pandemic the last straw as cannabis companies slide off their high

Picture: FABRICE COFFRINI / AFPAlready plagued by a tough regulatory environment, disappointing sales and capital markets that had closed to all but the strongest companies, the industry is now facing a pandemic-related collapse in stock markets and ever-shrinking financing options.

The lack of financing is starting to take its toll on the weakest companies. Last week, CannTrust Holdings and James E Wagner Cultivation filed for bankruptcy protection in Canada. For CannTrust, it was the end of a nine-month-long saga that began when regulators discovered it grew pot in unlicensed areas and ultimately suspended its licence, a blow it was unable to recover from.

Cronos Group, which is well capitalised thanks to a large investment by tobacco giant Altria Group, delayed the release of its fourth-quarter results and restated its financials for the previous three quarters because of issues with the way it reported certain bulk resin purchases. The company’s weak revenue in the quarter — just $7.3m — prompted at least three analysts to downgrade the stock.

Though cannabis sales jumped as self-isolation orders took effect in March, providing a rare respite for the struggling industry, there are already signs the initial spike is starting to wane.

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