Debra Borchardt
Vancouver-based Aurora Cannabis (ACBFF) is the hottest deal around these days as each time the company announces it has shares for sale, people line up. First, the company said it was doing a $50 million CAD deal, then it upsized that to $60 million CAD. Today, Aurora is announcing that “due to very significant demand for the Bought Deal, to proceed with a concurrent, non-commissioned, non-brokered private placement of up to 2,000,000 units of the Company at a price of $3.00 per Unit.”
If the deal is completely subscribed, it will bring Aurora another $6 million under a special deal with the underwriters that is a one-time commission free arrangement. This deal is expected to close on or about November 2, which is also the date when the larger deal is expected to close.
It’s been an incredibly busy couple of months for Aurora. The company kicked off September by announcing it was supplying the German medical cannabis market. Then followed that up with an agreement with Namaste for hardware. In the beginning of October (seems so long ago) Aurora acquired BC Northern Lights and Urban Cultivator for C$3.85 million. Then last week, the company announced the $50 million deal to be used for expansion and general working capital purposes.
The OTC Market traded stock is up 48% for the past year reaching a 52-week high of $2.96 and was lately trading at $2.34. During the company’s last earnings report, Aurora did continue to deliver sales growth, but it also reported a net loss of $4.8 million. The company is sitting on a mountain of cash, $159 million as of that last quarter and this deal will add to the kitty.
Aurora’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Aurora Cannabis Enterprises Inc., is a licensed producer of medical cannabis pursuant to Health Canada’s Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (“ACMPR”). The Company operates a 55,200 square foot, state-of-the-art production facility in Mountain View County, Alberta, known as “Aurora Mountain”, is currently constructing a second 800,000 square foot production facility, known as “Aurora Sky”, at the Edmonton International Airport, and has acquired, and is undertaking completion of a third 40,000 square foot production facility in Pointe-Claire, Quebec, on Montreal’s West Island.
According to a statement, “The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements.”
