A political shift in the United States has unlocked an estimated $1.38 billion jackpot for struggling pot producers who have cashed in on a surge in their shares since President Joe Biden’s election in November. Cannabis producers have issued stock worth this amount in the first five weeks of 2021, investment firm Viridian Capital Advisors estimates, as prices have risen on a promise of the federal decriminalization of marijuana and a host of other reforms by the incoming Biden administration. Canadian pot companies have been the largest beneficiaries of the rally in shares, owing to the fact that they have been allowed to list on U.S. exchanges, while U.S. companies that harvest or sell marijuana within the country are forbidden from doing so. Retail investors have also piled into the pot sector this week, with Tilray, Aphria, and Sundial Growers emerging as the new favorites of Reddit’s popular WallStreetBets forum that was behind recent rallies in some shorted stocks.
Shariq Khan, Business & Financial News, U.S & International Breaking News | Reuters, 02/11/2021 12:45:00