Staff
It’s time for your Daily Hit of cannabis financial news for October 15, 2019.
On The Site
Aphria
Aphria Inc. (TSX: APHA)(NYSE: APHA) stock jumped over 16% to trade at approximately $5.10 in early trading after the company reported that its revenue increased 849% to $126.1 million for the first quarter ending August 31, 2019, however sales declined 2% from the previous quarter. Adult-use cannabis accounted for $20 million in revenue for the first quarter, an 8% sequential increase.
The company delivered net income of $16.4 million in the first quarter. It also stated that it ended the quarter with a strong balance sheet and liquidity, including $464.3 million of cash, cash equivalents, and liquid marketable securities, to fund planned Canadian and International growth.
Psychedelics
Orthogonal Thinker announced last month that it raised $2.5 million in capital. This funding completes approximately $4 million in seed capital raised to date, with more funding coming in.
Orthogonal will use this financing to support the distribution and development of new products across its family of companies, including subsidiaries EI.ventures and Maui Raw. EI.ventures is a formulations company that holds the intellectual property rights for plant-based psychoactive compounds. Maui Raw is a clean-food CPG company committed to delivering non-GMO raw food products. Over the last 10 years, Orthogonal has acquired and developed products supporting new food, technology, and scientific advancements in plant medicine to elevate and empower humanity.
Canopy Growth
Canopy Growth Corporation (NYSE: CGC) stock jumped over 7% on news that the company sold its 42,087,639 shares in Australian cannabis company AusCann Group Holdings (AusCann) via an off-market block trade at $0.15 per share for gross proceeds of $6.3 million. The trade was facilitated by Canaccord Australia. The stock was lately trading at $20.32. The sale represents Canopy Growth’s total 13.2% interest in AusCann.
Canopy also said that it closed the previously announced acquisition of the cannabinoid based research company Beckley Canopy Therapeutics, including the joint commercial venture Spectrum Biomedical UK. The company said that the teams will now be integrated into the broader Spectrum Therapeutics organization to increase the breadth of the clinical research being pursued under the Spectrum banner and to combine continental European and the United Kingdom commercial teams.
Flowhub
Cannabis tech company Flowhub has raised an oversubscribed $23 million Series A financing round led by e.ventures, Evolv Ventures — the venture fund backed by Kraft Heinz — and Poseidon, with contributions from investors 9Yards Capital, former NBA commissioner David Stern and Iqram Magdon-Ismail, the co-founder and former CEO of Venmo, among others.
In Other News
SLANG Worldwide Inc. (CNSX: SLNG) announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with Cookies, a leading California-based cannabis and lifestyle brand, to bring Cookies’ products to the Colorado market.
Freehold Properties, a newly formed real estate investment company focused on specialized agricultural, industrial and cannabis properties, and Revolution Global, a Chicago-based multi-state cannabis operator, today announced that Freehold will provide Revolution up to $28.75 million in real estate capital expansion funding. Utilizing the capital from Freehold, Revolution plans to more than double the capacity of its flagship cultivation facility.
Driven Deliveries, Inc. (the “Company” or Driven) (OTC: DRVD), California’s fastest growing online cannabis retailers and direct to consumer delivery company, is pleased to announce the return of 12,272,616 shares of outstanding common stock originally held by past founders to the Company’s treasury. Effective October 15, 2019, the Company will have 42,083,024 shares of common stock and 0 shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding.
Namaste Technologies Inc. (TSXV: N) (OTCMKTS: NXTTF) announced that CannMart Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Namaste, has received approval from Health Canada for an amendment to its license allowing it to offer cannabis oil concentrates on its online marketplace, CannMart.com.
