Cannabis stocks, as measured by the Global Cannabis Stock Index, fell again in July, declining 10.0% to 90.12 after posting a new 2018 low:
The index, which had 53 qualifying members that were equally weighted at the time of the prior rebalancing in June (now 52, after the removal on 7/26 of MedReleaf, which was acquired by Aurora Cannabis), declined 29.5% in the first six months of the year and has now decreased 36.6% in 2018. Despite the losses, the index is still up more than 58% since bottoming in late October.
Weakness among the Canadian LPs pressured the returns during the month. The index began the month with 71.7% of the composition in Canada, including 39.6% licensed producers. One stock listed on the Australian Stock Exchange accounted for 1.9%.
Only 8 companies posted gains:
CV Sciences (OTC: CVSI) pre-announced a very strong quarter during the month, with sales tripling. Hiku Brands (CSE: HIKU) (OTC: DJACF) terminated its merger agreement with WeedMD (TSXV: WMD) (OTC: WDDMF), opting instead to be acquired by Canopy Growth (TSX: WEED) (NYSE: CGC).
Nineteen companies posted declines in excess of 15%, with fifteen of them having primary listings in Canada, including 6 licensed producers, and one in Australia:
We criticized the accounting of PotNetwork Holdings (OTC: POTN) when it filed a Form 10 with the SEC during the month. After our report, the company withdrew its filing when its auditor lost its PCAOB certification.
We will summarize the index performance again in a month. You can learn more about the index members and the qualifications for inclusion by visiting the Global Cannabis Stock Index. Be sure to bookmark the page to stay current on cannabis stock price movements within the day or from day-to-day.
