Cannabis stocks, as measured by the Global Cannabis Stock Index, passed the anniversary a year go when they exploded higher in late August on news that the Department of Health and Human Services had recommended to the DEA that it move cannabis from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3 with a weak month in August. The index had soared on the last day in April, when the DEA shared that it was officially recommending that rescheduling that had been requested, but it plunged in May and moved lower in June. In July and in the first part of August, the GCSI moved higher, but cannabis stocks fell sharply after the DEA announced late on August 26th that it was holding a hearing on December 2nd. The index gained in September, which helped the index advance marginally in Q3. For the month of October, the index was down 6.6% to 8.22:
In 2023, the index ended down 16.5% to 8.11. In Q1, it rose 26.0%, declined 15.8% in Q2 and increased 2.2% during Q3. The index is up 1.4% in 2024 so far:
Since the peak in February 2021, the Global Cannabis Stock Index has dropped 91.1% from the 92.48 closing high:
The strongest 3 names in October all rose by more than 9%:
- High Tide (NASDAQ: HITI) (TSXV: HITI): +37.6%
- Ayr Wellness (OTC: AYRWF) (CSE: AYR.A): +18.8%
- Turning Point Brands (NYSE: TPB): +9.5%
High Tide has a very strong year-to-date return so far. Ayr Wellness has rallied too. Turning Point Brands, which was up less than the two other best performers, is up the most at +80.9%.
The 3 weakest names in October all fell by more than 22%:
- Greenlane (NASDAQ: MAPS): -45.1%
- Lexaria (NASDAQ: LEXX): -29.5%
- TerrAscend (OTC: TSNDF) (TSX: TSND): -22.5%
Greenlane, a recent addition again to the index, led the way lower.While it was weak this month and last, Lexaria has rallied sharply in 2024. TerrAscend posted a new all-time low this month and is down sharply this year.
We will summarize the index performance again in a month and provide an update on the quarterly rebalancing. 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.
New Cannabis Ventures maintains four proprietary indices designed to help investors monitor the publicly-traded cannabis stocks, including the Global Cannabis Stock Index as well as the Canadian Cannabis LP Index. The American Cannabis Operator Index, was launched at the end of October 2018 and tracks the leading cultivators, processors and retailers of cannabis in the United States. More recently, we introduced the Ancillary Cannabis Index at the end of March 2021, reflecting the increasing number of publicly-traded companies providing goods or services to cannabis operators.
