When the curtain closes on 2018 in roughly eight weeks, it's likely to go down as the most monumental year on record for the legal cannabis industry. Though there have been major advances before -- including California becoming the first state to legalize medical marijuana in 1996 and Uruguay becoming the first country in the world to legalize recreational marijuana -- arguably nothing beats Canada's decision to legalize recreational marijuana in 2018.
Looking to invest in publicly traded cannabis stocks? There’s good news and bad news.
Legalization of marijuana has arrived in Canada, and technology is playing a big role in this new industry, everything from artificial intelligence in production, to software for supply chain management, to e-commerce sites for distribution and apps to help track usage.
Canada on Wednesday became the first major world economy to legalize recreational marijuana use, beginning a national experiment that will alter the country’s social, cultural and economic fabric, and present the nation with its biggest public policy challenge in decades.
Newfoundlanders became the first Canadians to be able to smoke pot legally, when retailers there opened in the country’s easternmost province at midnight.
The three Canadian marijuana stocks that currently trade on major U.S. stock exchanges enjoyed big gains on Monday. Shares of Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC) were up 14% as of 3:48 p.m. EDT, while Cronos Group (NASDAQ:CRON) and Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY) jumped 18.9% and 12.1%, respectively.
"The marijuana and cannabis industry — sometimes referred to as the Wild West of investing — is littered with high-flyers, potentially over-valued companies, and even scams," the stock brokerage firm said in a three-minute video posted on its Youtube account.
Young traders have flocked to stock trading apps from companies like Robinhood and TD Ameritrade to cash in on the hype around marijuana stocks.
Reefer madness has gripped Wall Street.
Investors are craving marijuana stocks as Canada prepares to legalize cannabis in October 2018, leading to giant gains for Canada-based companies listed on U.S. exchanges. Some experts are concerned that the ending will be a buzzkill.
Increased mergers and acquisitions among the Canadian cannabis market ahead of weed going legal next month. Motley Fool Canada Investor Analyst David Kretzmann explains the market activity and his outlook for this budding industry.
In a press release, The Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF (HMMJ), which offers direct exposure to North American-listed companies with business activities in the marijuana industry, said its total assets under management have grown to more than $1 billion Canadian dollars — $760 million U.S.
Tilray wins hands down in terms of stock price momentum. Over the last month, Tilray's share price has nearly quadrupled. Cronos Group and Canopy Growth have come close to doubling during the same period. Shares of Scotts Miracle-Gro, on the other hand, are down slightly.