Things continue to get uglier for cannabis stocks and investors. The bull run that ended in October 2018 seems like a distant dream given the sustained sell-off in marijuana stocks.
Pot companies have been hit hard by lower than expected demand and a thriving black market. This has increased inventory levels and hurt profit margins. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic and a tepid demand environment have exacerbated these issues.
Hexo remains of the largest companies in the recreational marijuana space. It signed a five-year agreement with the Quebec province to supply 200,000 kilograms of recreational cannabis. Further, similar to most pot stocks, Hexo was eyeing expansion in the Cannabis 2.0 market as well.
However, supply bottlenecks and the ongoing pandemic has wreaked havoc for the Canadian marijuana giant. Hexo had to reduce operating expenses and reduce supply to meet consumer demand. It also sold off the Niagara grow farm acquired in 2019 with the acquisition of Newstrike Brands.
Hexo ended the April quarter with a cash balance of $95.66 million. Comparatively, it has a debt of $109.34 million and with operating cash flow of a negative $174 million, its liquidity position remains precarious.
Hexo is looking to gain traction in other international markets and recently set up a supply agreement with an Israel-based medical cannabis company. It is also trying increase its visibility in the U.S. with the launch of non-alcoholic, hemp-derived CBD beverages in Colorado.
While diversifying its revenue and entering additional markets will help Hexo in the long run, its cash position and mounting losses remain a major cause of concern.
In the second quarter, TGOD sales were up 58% on a sequential basis at $4.83 million. Canadian cannabis sales were up 309% at $2.72 million while hemp-derived product sales from Europe were $2.11 million.
The revenue growth was attributed to expanded distribution due to processing capacity and the launch of new product lines. Its net loss fell to $9.8 million, compared to a $63.7 million loss in Q1.
However, TGOD’s cash balance at the end of Q2 was $18.8 million, compared to its debt of $43 million and operating cash flow of a negative $32.4 million. This means the company will also have to raise additional equity capital while it focuses on lowering costs and improving the bottom-line.
Hexo and TGOD are companies that are part of rapidly expanding addressable markets. However, the widening losses and cash burn make the marijuana giants vulnerable as they dilute investor wealth when the companies raise equity capital.
The post Marijuana Investors: 2 Canadian Pot Stocks to Avoid In 2020 appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
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