John Schroyer
Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries (CSE: GTII) (OTCQX: GTBIF) posted a $9.1 million profit for the first three months of 2023 against $249 million in revenue, the company reported Wednesday.
The slim profit margin follows a $12 million year in 2022 for GTI, which continues to be one of the few multistate operators in cannabis to be announcing profits instead of losses.
GTI even managed to grow its year-over-year revenue slightly in the first quarter, up 2% from $242.6 million in 2022, which the company attributed primarily to its wide retail presence and the openings of some new adult-use marijuana markets in the United States.
But overall, profits were down year-over-year by 68.5%, from $28.9 million in Q1 2022.
Still, being in the black gave CEO Ben Kovler an opening to tout GTI’s “momentum” heading into 2023.
As of March 31, GTI had $185 million in cash, total assets of $358 million, and $278 million in debts, and Kovler pointed to the company’s liquidity as evidence of its wide array of options.
“Our $185 million cash balance continues to give us the optionality to make investment decisions that will position us for the increasing demand for legal cannabis, a market estimated by analysts to grow to $75 billion over the next decade,” Kovler said in a statement.
“For the past few years, we have made sizeable investments to strengthen our infrastructure and expand our capacity rather than focus our dollars on significant M&A. These strategic decisions strengthen our balance sheet and will allow us to support additional retail locations in key markets this year,” he said.
GTI also opened two new stores in April, one in Minnesota and another in Pennsylvania, the company reported. That brings its total retail footprint to 79 dispensaries in 14 states.
Also just last month, Drug Policy Alliance founder Ethan Nadelmann joined the GTI board of directors, the company announced.
