During the last year, the United States (US) cannabis industry has recorded impressive growth and we attribute the increase to medical markets transitioning into recreational markets as well as the maturing and opening of new markets. 

According to BDS Analytics, Arizona’s transition to a recreational cannabis market has been a major catalyst for growth. After the state transitioned to the recreational market, cannabis sales in April increased by 68% and jumped to $124.9 million. The state generated more than $52 million of recreational cannabis sales while medical cannabis accounted for more than $73 million which represents a 17% decline when compared to last year. 

Although Nevada reported more than 125% growth on a year-over-year basis, the numbers are being compared to April 2020. We find this to be worth highlighting since Las Vegas was one of the markets that was negatively impacted by the COVID pandemic. Going forward, we expect Nevada to continue to record strong sales growth on a year-over-year basis but cannot get too excited about it due to the comps from last year. 

According to BDS analytics, Colorado continues to be an attractive market and generated $202.8 million of cannabis revenue in April. On a year-over-year basis, the state recorded more than 30% growth and this is a market that we continue to be bullish on. 

California is considered to be one of the largest cannabis markets in the world. According to BDS analytics, the state generated more than $355.8 million of cannabis revenue in April which represents more than 40% growth on a year-over-year basis.

Although most of the major cannabis markets are located on the west coast of the US, the east coast has been recording impressive advancements. From the legalization of recreational cannabis in Illinois and Michigan to the growth of the medical cannabis market in Florida, we are favorable on how the industry has advanced since 2020 and expect this trend to become more significant in the coming years.

Some of the east coast markets that we are the most excited about include: Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, and Pennsylvania. In the back half of the year, we expect these markets to continue to record strong growth as more dispensaries open and as regulations ease. 

During the last month, several Canadian Licensed Producers (LPs) have been highlighted on CNBC as attractive ways to have the leverage to the US market. Although we believe there are better options available, some of the companies that have been featured include: Tilray, Inc. (TSX: TLRY) (Nasdaq: TLRY), Canopy Growth Corporation (TSX: WEED) (NYSE: CGC), and Aurora Cannabis Inc. (TSX: ACB) (Nasdaq: ACB)