10 Big-Cap Canadian Cannabis Stocks

The Canadian cannabis stocks industry has been building to incredible heights this past year with the legalization of recreational cannabis last fall and increasing demand from industry investors. 

With the expected rollout of edible cannabis products slated for this December, experts anticipate a boom in the market for the plant in the months to come.

With that in mind, what are the biggest players in the marijuana space? The following companies were the 10 largest big-cap cannabis stocks in Canada as of July 16, 2019. All stocks listed had market caps between C$500 million and C$17 billion at that time.

1. Canopy Growth (TSX:WEED,NYSE:CGC)

Market cap C$16.11 billion; current share price: C$46.01

Kicking off our cannabis stocks list is Canopy Growth, a longtime favorite in the space. Tweed, Spectrum Cannabis and Bedrocan Canada make up Canopy’s core brands. The company also has its famed facility in Smiths Falls — a renovated former Hershey (NYSE:HSY) chocolate factory.

Canopy was the first cannabis stock to surpass a C$1 billion market cap, and it has used its capital to acquire stakes in other smaller licensed producers and to extend its reach into international markets.

It has partnerships with famous rapper and marijuana smoker Snoop Dogg, as well as DNA Genetics, AusCann (ASX:AC8) and Indoor Harvest. Canopy is on an accelerated expansion path, and recently announced an increase in its production capacity with a license from Health Canada for a new outdoor site in Saskatchewan. Canopy’s share price, however, has taken a hit since the company removed Bruce Linton, one of its founders, from his position as co-CEO and board member in July 2019.

2. Aurora Cannabis (TSX:ACB,NYSE:ACB)

Market cap C$9.51 billion; current share price: C$9.19

Aurora Cannabis is another one of the big cannabis growers in the space. It was officially issued its ACMPR license to sell in November 2015.

Since then, Aurora has made waves, receiving press for events such as its controversial C$1.1 billion acquisition of CanniMed Therapeutics. Aurora also has stakes in many other marijuana companies, such as fellow Canadian firm The Green Organic Dutchman (TSX:TGOD).

In June, the company announced plans for an expansion in the cannabis market with vapes, concentrates and edibles, as well as a national awareness campaign to educate cannabis producers and users about the safe consumption of these new products.

3. Cronos Group (TSX:CRON,NASDAQ:CRON)

Market cap C$6.58 billion; current share price: C$19.34

Cronos Group, based in Toronto and founded in 2012, is not only bi-coastal in Canada, but has started distribution and production operations across five continents. The company owns three cannabis brands: PeaceNaturals, its health and wellness brand, as well as Cove and Spinach, both of which are focused on adult-use cannabis products.

It also has a supply agreement with Pohl-Boskamp, a pharmaceutical manufacturer and supplier in Germany. Plus, the company has a joint venture with Kibbutz Gan Shmuel, an agricultural producer that exports to 35 countries.

Cronos made headlines in Q1 2018 when it became the first Canadian cannabis stock to list on the NASDAQ. Its Q1 results for 2019 show that net revenue was C$6.5 million, a 120 percent increase from C$2.9 million for the same quarter in 2018.

In July, the company entered into an agreement to acquire an 84,000 square foot fermentation and manufacturing facility in Winnipeg with a microbiology and organic chemistry laboratory, as well as processing plants and packaging facilities.

4. Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY)

Market cap US$4.34 billion; current share price: US$44.07

Tilray, founded in Nanaimo, BC, and incorporated in the United States, is a cannabis and pharmaceutical company. It was the first licensed producer to legally export medical cannabis to Africa, Australia, Europe and South America.

As the first GMP-certified medical marijuana producer, Tilray has put an emphasis on increasing its international presence, and imported medical marijuana oil into Ireland for the first time for national distribution in July.

The company’s Q1 results for 2019 indicate a 195.1 percent increase in revenue to C$31 million compared to the first quarter of last year. The company credited the legalization of recreational cannabis use in Canada for the boost in earnings.

5. Aphria (TSX:APH,NYSE:APHA)

Market cap C$2.06 billion; current share price: C$8.21

In April 2016, Aphria became one of Canada’s medical marijuana leaders when it entered into a C$6.5 million deal to acquire 360,000 square feet of existing production space. Since then, it has acquired 1.1 million square feet for cultivation in Canada and now produces 115,000 kilograms of product annually.

The company was also the first public licensed medical cannabis producer to report cash flow from operations and earnings in back-to-back quarters. The company’s German subsidiary, Aphria Deutschland (Aphria Germany), received its fifth license for medical cannabis cultivation in May.

Aphria’s Q3 results for the 2019 fiscal year show that net revenue was C$73.6 million, an increase of 240 percent from the previous quarter.

6. HEXO (TSX:HEXO,NYSE:HEXO)

Market cap C$1.70 billion; current share price: C$6.72

HEXO focuses on recreational cannabis products like cannabis oil as well as dried cannabis flower. Originally incorporated in 2013 under the name the Hydropothecary, the company started in the medical cannabis business but expanded once recreational cannabis use became legal last year.

This year, HEXO has entered a syndicated credit facility with CIBC and BMO “for up to C$65 million available credit to fund continuing expansion and innovation initiatives,” according to a press release.

In July, the company announced the transfer of its common shares from the NYSE American to the New York Stock Exchange; it has been trading there since July 16.

7. OrganiGram Holdings (TSXV:OGI,NASDAQ:OGI)

Market cap C$1.31 billion; current share price: C$8.00

While OrganiGram started as a medical cannabis provider when it was founded in 2013, the company is now also focused on producing cannabis for both medical and recreational use for Canadian and international consumers.

The company got approval from Health Canada in June for the licensing of 17 new cultivation rooms.

In early July, OrganiGram announced that its has developed new nano-emulsification technologyto produce both liquid and powdered cannabis beverages in anticipation of the legalization of edible cannabis products in Canada later this year.

8. The Green Organic Dutchman

Market cap C$872.57 million; current share price: C$3.16

The Green Organic Dutchman was first established in 2012 and began trading on the TSX last year. It’s since honed in on sustainable cannabis practices.

The company announced a partnership in June with another company on this list, Neptune Wellness Solutions (TSX:NEPT). It is a multi-year agreement for extraction formulation and packaging services. The company has also been working on getting its fingers into the international market. Dutchman’s subsidiary, HemPoland, has entered an agreement with Mediakos, a German online pharmacy, to be the exclusive distributor of its hemp cannabinoid (CBD) brand for the German pharmaceutical market.

The company’s international ventures have proven to be lucrative. Its quarterly results for Q1 2019 show that the bulk of its C$2.4 million revenue was from HemPoland.

9. Village Farms International (TSX:VFF,NASDAQ:VFF)

Market cap C$607.8 million; current share price: C$12.28

Village Farms International has been around since 1987 and originally made a name for itself in the agriculture industry as a hydroponic grower of cucumbers, tomatoes and sweet peppers. In 2018, it announced that it was embarking on a joint venture with Emerald Health Therapeutics (TSXV:EMH,OTCQX:EMHTF) to create Pure Sunfarms, a low-cost, high-quality cannabis production facility in Delta.

Earlier this year, the company announced a partnership with Canna Farms to reach into the online retail space, and it also began converting half of its 1.3 million square foot greenhouse facility in Texas for the cultivation of cannabidiol hemp and CBD extraction.

The company also announced that Q1 2019 was its second consecutive quarter of profitability.

10. Neptune Wellness Solutions

Market cap C$510.87 million; current share price: C$6.45

Neptune specializes in cannabis extraction, purification and formulation for its products and also has its hands in the pet supplement and speciality ingredients industries.

This year has been a busy one for Neptune. In March, Neptune announced the start of commercial production and the start of commercial shipping of its cannabis extracts from its facility in Sherbrooke. Neptune has also signed a couple of different multi-year extraction and formulation agreements with two other companies on this list: Tilray and The Green Organic Dutchman.

It also received an amendment from Health Canada this year that will allow it to expand its cannabis production capacity to 200,000 kilograms from 30,000 kilograms.

INNdepth

Want more details? Check out these articles for more INNdepth coverage.

• Cannabis Companies: Stocks on the TSXV
• Invest in Cannabis: TSX Cannabis Stocks
• Cannabis stocks on the CSE25 Index
• CSE Marijuana Stocks
• 10 Small-cap Cannabis Stocks
• Are Canadian Marijuana Stocks a Good Investment?
• Top Canadian Cannabis Stocks Year-to-Date
• Cannabis Investment: Canadian Cannabis Stocks

Want an overview of investing in cannabis stocks? Check Investing in the Cannabis Industry

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Securities Disclosure: I, Danielle Edwards, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.