Cannabis Weekly Round-Up: Tilray/Aphria Deal Faces Delay

A planned business merger between two leading cannabis producers hit a small delay this week as a critical vote got moved.

Meanwhile, a cannabis retail operator elected to celebrate 420 by auctioning a cannabis-themed digital art piece using blockchain technology.

Keep reading to find out more cannabis highlights from the past five days.

Tilray delays critical shareholder meeting

On Thursday (April 15), Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY) announced it will be postponing its shareholder vote on the fate of its merger with Aphria (NASDAQ:APHA,TSX:APHA). It will take place on April 30 instead of April 16.

Neither cannabis company offered an explanation for the change. Tilray has asked shareholders to participate in this vote regardless of how many shares they may hold. “Tilray stockholders who have not already voted, or wish to change their vote, are strongly encouraged to do so,” the company said.

This news came days after Aphria shareholders overwhelmingly voted in favor of the business transaction, with a total of 99.38 percent of shareholders voting for the deal to continue. Confirmation from Aphria Chairman and CEO Irwin Simon indicated the partnership was en route to being complete.

This past week Aphria also released financial results for the third quarter of its 2021 fiscal year, in which the firm highlights the overall direction of the company with the Tilray deal.

“We expect to have a tremendous runway for long-term sustainable growth as we build upon our existing foundation in Canada and internationally by increasing the scale of our global operations,” Simon said in a statement.

Cannabis retailer celebrates digital trend

As part of a celebration for April 20, otherwise known as 420, Fire & Flower Holdings (TSX:FAF,OTCQX:FFLWF) announced the dissemination of a non-fungible token (NFT) digital art piece.

Bidding for the piece, named “Non-Fungible Toke“ started at a price of C$4.20. The retailer plans to donate the proceeds to two charities, Second Harvest and Less.

The latter is designed to counter the carbon footprint of blockchain technology, a common criticism drawn against the rise of NFTs and other novel technologies.

As of 11:00 a.m. EST on Friday (April 16), the NFT bid was up to C$169.11.

Cannabis company news

• The Valens Company (TSX:VLNS,OTCQX:VLNCF) issued its financial report for the first quarter of its 2021 fiscal year. In its results, the company highlights a net revenue uptick of 24.7 percent from the previous quarter, resulting in C$20 million for the period.

• Trulieve Cannabis (CSE:TRUL,OTCQX:TCNNF) closed a public offering of 5 million subordinate voting shares at a price of C$50 each for total gross proceeds of C$287.5 million. The company celebrated its financial position after an offering in January, which will lead to the pursuit of merger and acquisition targets.

• Australis Capital (CSE:AUSA,OTCQB:AUSAF) appointed Jason Dyck as its new chief science officer and chairman of the firm’s scientific advisory board. Dyck previously served as an executive at Aurora Cannabis (NASDAQ:ACB,TSX:ACB), leading the scientific efforts for the cannabis producer. “I look forward to providing AUSA with advice and direction in its scientific efforts towards bringing innovations to market with immediate and significant commercial appeal,” Dyck said.

• Truss Beverage, a cannabis drinks venture co-owned by Molson Coors Beverage Company (NYSE:TAP,TSX:TPX) and HEXO (NYSE:HEXO,TSX:HEXO), released the details of its new lineup of infused beverages. Six new drinks will become available around the summer and are intended to pair with the season.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Bryan Mc Govern, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.