You are reading this week’s edition of New Cannabis Ventures, a weekly magazine we have published since October 2015. The newsletter includes unique insight to help our readers stay ahead of the curve, as well as links to the most important news of the week. We no longer email them like we used to, but post this and all newsletters on our website here.
friends,
About three months ago, this newsletter talked about cannabis stock traders care a lot about MSOs again, but that they weren’t paying attention to an older MSO that was in the process of getting much bigger, Vireo Growth. As I mentioned at the time, despite its very large size, Vireo Growth failed to join the Global Cannabis Stock Index due to its low trading volume. Yesterday I went through the quarterly rebalancing process for the upcoming new quarter, which starts seven days from the close of trade, and Vireo still doesn’t qualify. The price then topped the low of $0.50 at $0.5682, but the stock has traded an average of just 221,000 shares per day over the past month. The dollar volume is about $100,000, which is well below the required minimum.
I shared that there weren’t many analysts following Vireo three months ago, and that remains the case. The Vireo Growth website has no analysts listed on it analyst coverage pageSeeking Alpha shares analyst estimates, noting that there is one analyst. I use a system, Koyfin, and it has the same ratings. As I mentioned, Zuanic & Associates does cover the stock, but I don’t think its ratings are included in the consensus. It expects Vireo’s revenue to grow to $436 million in 2026 from $259.9 million in 2025, according to a report in mid-November.
Since then, the company has announced two pending transactions and purchased a large number of senior convertible debt Schwazze at a discounted price. This month, the company said it was buying some assets PharmaCann: in Colorado and that it goes to Eaze to enter California and Florida. Vireo is very active in consolidating the cannabis industry. A year ago, the company was located in Minnesota, which was used for adults, and Maryland, and it had a failed business in New York. Its Q3 report reflected acquisitions in Missouri, Nevada and Utah. Total revenue of $91.7 million includes $12.0 million in Minnesota, $10.4 million in Maryland, $6.1 million in New York (mostly wholesale) and $63.2 million from new states. The Vireo is up NCV revenue ratingReaching #7 among MSOs with positive operating income in the third quarter;
While Vireo Growth is No. 7 among MSOs by revenue, it is No. 11 in the AdvisorShares Pure US Cannabis ETF ( MSOS ), which has a holding of just 0.6% of the fund. The 9.51 million shares controlled by MSOS are down from last week as the ETF faced some redemptions, but it’s still well up from 6.9 million shares at midyear and 6.7 million at the end of 2024. At the end of June, the share was 1.0% of the ETF, so it’s down. The top three positions represent an average of 22.4% MSOS each, which is 36X greater than the VREOF position. This is not at all consistent with its market share or market cap.
Vireo Growth made a very large capital raise in late 2024, selling $81 million a share at $0.625, and it recently traded below that level and closed there today. It issued a lot of shares to cover its acquisitions. In fact, the company reports more than 1 billion shares outstanding. The stock ended 2024 at $0.56, so it’s up 11.6% this year. This compares with the Global Hemp Stock Index at 6.92, up 0.6%, and MSOS returning 24.7%.
I think cannabis investors should keep a close eye on Vireo stock for a sign of the health of the overall cannabis sector. At 420 Investor, I include 19 hemp stocks in my Focus List, and this group does not include Vireo Growth. I keep an eye on it though because it is part of a group of 7 stocks that I have on my stock watchlist to potentially add to the Focus List. While it is not in the index, the other six are or will be in a week.
I wish the best for Vireo Growth and a Merry Christmas to all New Cannabis Ventures readers.
Sincerely,
Alan:
New Cannabis Ventures publishes curated articles as well as exclusive news. Here is what we published last week.
Follow Alan for real-time updates X.com:. Share and discover industry news with like-minded people on the largest group of cannabis investors and entrepreneurs LinkedIn:.
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Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as an online community founder 420 Investorthe first and still the largest due diligence platform focused on publicly traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. time New Cannabis Ventureshe is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before turning his attention to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst with more than two decades of research and portfolio management experience. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 Looking for Alphawhere he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and frequent source Media including the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Fox Business and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan. Twitter: |: Facebook |: LinkedIn: |: El
New Cannabis Ventures offers readers this easy-to-read exclusive summary of BDSA’s 15-state monthly cannabis sales data.
In January, cannabis sales decreased sequentially by 3.1%. In this review, we break down the results by state, starting with the western markets and then ending with the eastern markets. Overall, the BDSA estimates sales in 15 markets totaled $2.07 billion in January, up 4.6 percent from a year earlier. BDSA updated its Illinois numbers after the state recently changed the way it counts sales.
Western markets
BDSA provides coverage for Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada and Oregon. In December, annual growth was negative in 4 states. Growth in each of these states fell in succession.
Eastern markets
BDSA provides coverage for Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Annual growth in December ranged from -3.1% in Missouri to +37.6% in New York. Ohio began using adults in August, spurring growth. Note that Florida and Pennsylvania are medical markets only. On a daily basis, sequential gains declined in eight markets. Annual growth was negative in both markets and sharp in both states. We warned of a potential slowdown in Florida despite strong dispensary and unit volume growth due to competitive pressure.
For readers interested in a deeper look hemp markets in these fifteen states and more, including segmentation by additional product categories, brand and product details, longer history and segmentation by product attributes, learn how BDSA Solutions can give you access to actionable data and analytics.
Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as an online community founder 420 Investorthe first and still the largest due diligence platform focused on publicly traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. time New Cannabis Ventureshe is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before turning his attention to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst with more than two decades of research and portfolio management experience. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 Looking for Alphawhere he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and frequent source Media including the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Fox Business and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan. Twitter: |: Facebook |: LinkedIn: |: El
Illinois released sales figures for two months on Friday. The last time it released the data in November, the state did a major review of historical sales after a long delay, and it was updated to October. The previous report was for Cannabis for adults in May. The November document explained that the lack of data was due to the Metrc transition. “Sales tracking features in Metrc help retailers more accurately and reliably report actual sales, including all discounts and promotions at checkout. A careful review of past data shows that some initial discount prices were collected in previous months.” Here is the updated data until the end of 2025.
Statewide adult cannabis sales rose 5.6% sequentially to $116.6 million in December, up 2.2% on the day. Year-on-year growth was -23.9%, a slight improvement from November’s -26.1% growth. Here is a chart of adult sales over time:
After growing 106% in 2021, 13% in 2022 and 5% in 2023, annual sales for adults are set to grow 5.4% to $1.72 billion in 2024. In 2025, they decreased by 12.5% to $1.51 billion, which was lower than the total in 2022.
There hasn’t been an update from the state on medical cannabis in a while. The state exempts the sale separately from its medical plan, and April issue showed that sales fell 1.6% sequentially to $19.7 million, down 13.2% year over year.
Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as an online community founder 420 Investorthe first and still the largest due diligence platform focused on publicly traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. time New Cannabis Ventureshe is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before turning his attention to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst with more than two decades of research and portfolio management experience. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 Looking for Alphawhere he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and frequent source Media including the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Fox Business and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan. Twitter: |: Facebook |: LinkedIn: |: El
You are reading this week’s edition of New Cannabis Ventures, a weekly magazine we have published since October 2015. The newsletter includes unique insight to help our readers stay ahead of the curve, as well as links to the most important news of the week. We no longer email them like we used to, but post this and all newsletters on our website here.
friends,
This week, Scotts Miracle-Gro, the largest stock in the Global Hemp Stock Index by market capitalization, announced that it has found a buyer for its Hawthorne Gardening Company business in Vireo Growth. This news first appeared in an online article published by the Wall Street Journaland then Vireo issued a press release like Scotts Miracle-Gro, which also reported in its fiscal 1st quarter.
The deal is not a done deal. Vireo called it a “non-binding memorandum of understanding” but did not discuss the terms of the deal or when it might close. Scotts Miracle-Gro, which had already told investors it was working on this type of deal, did not disclose Hawthorne’s financial results for the 1st quarter. Analysts didn’t really ask any questions about it during the conference. The WSJ article said Vireo is giving Scotts Miracle-Gro 13% of its stock in return, but neither company has disclosed that in their press releases or SEC filings.
I include SMG in my 420 Investor Focus List, but Vireo is not a member of that group. Vireo also failed to qualify for the Global Cannabis Stock Index due to its low trading volumes. As I detailed five weeks ago, The Vireo has grown very large in terms of revenue and its geographic focus. The stock was then at $0.625 and is now lower, closing at $0.55. On Christmas Eve, the decline was 12.0%, while the MSOS fell 10.1%.
Maybe investors are interested in this deal and I’m not. First, it’s not a done deal. Second, to purchase Hawthorne, the investor must assume 280E taxation risk. Third, the price seems high, as 13% of the company is worth about $75 million. Fourth, it’s not clear to me that marrying a hemp operator with a subsidiary makes sense as I recall TILT Holdings.
I have followed Hawthorne Gardening for a long time and am glad that CEO Hagedorn and his team have gone ahead and purchased it and expanded it. The hemp industry has been struggling for about five years, and the big drop in Hawthorne Gardening’s revenue is not SMG’s fault in my opinion. It’s not clear to me how Vireo Growth will make it a better action, but I hope it has a good plan.
I continue to believe that investors should pay close attention to what is happening with shares in Vireo. This potential acquisition was not something that was discussed by analysts or investors, but today’s volume of 277 thousand shares was very low. Once again, Vireo, thanks to its aggressive M&A activity, has become the 7th largest MSO in the NCV Revenue Tracker. It remains very troubling to me that stocks are not earning a lot of interest.
Sincerely,
Alan:
New Cannabis Ventures publishes curated articles as well as exclusive news. Here is what we published last week.
Follow Alan for real-time updates X.com:. Share and discover industry news with like-minded people on the largest group of cannabis investors and entrepreneurs LinkedIn:.
Stay on top of the most important communications from public companies by watching what’s coming cannabis investor calendar.
Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as an online community founder 420 Investorthe first and still the largest due diligence platform focused on publicly traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. time New Cannabis Ventureshe is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before turning his attention to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst with more than two decades of research and portfolio management experience. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 Looking for Alphawhere he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and frequent source Media including the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Fox Business and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan. Twitter: |: Facebook |: LinkedIn: |: El
