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🤢The Stage Is Set 🤢

Author

William McNarland
March 06, 2024

GM Everyone,

Yesterday was Super Tuesday, and in a surprising string of events, Nikki Haley dropped out of the race, and it's looking like Donald Trump will be the GOP candidate on the ticket in 2024. This means we are going to have a rematch of the geriatrics come November. Sigh. What does this mean for our darling cannabis industry? We aren't really sure, and to be honest, we think it doesn't mean much. The DEA works "autonomously" outside of the purview of the administration, so the HHS recommendation we saw and believe the DEA is going to accept is still very much intact. The timing is just anyone's guess. But now that the stage is set from a candidate's perspective, it's time for Joe to start pulling his political levers. Let's get this done.

Today’s letter can be read in 7 minutes and 15 seconds. 

  • Curaleaf and Marimed to report after the bell

  • TDR Cannabis Index was a sea of red yesterday

  • Crypto volatility is alive and well

  • VA Deep Dive video is down below

Capital Markets Recap of Yesterday:

We now have eight TDR Indexes covering stocks and investments of interest to our readers. They assist us at TDR in tracking the market but, more importantly, save you, our reader, time, as this detailed information is not available elsewhere. We designed them to be unique and straightforward. So, here we go...

Yesterday, the capital markets experienced a downturn. The TDR Crypto Index saw a significant drop of 8.74% after reaching new highs earlier in the day. The cannabis sector also declined, with the TDR Cannabis Comprehensive Index falling by 2.16%. The TDR Cannabis Pharma and Integrated sectors led the losses, each dropping by over 3%. However, the TDR Cannabis Financials and Retail sectors saw gains. The TDR Small and Micro Cap REIT decreased by a modest 0.5%. For more details, refer to the TDR Indexes displayed in their distinctive TDR Green colors below.

Capital Markets this Morning:

What's Driving the Market Today?

The futures are showing a positive open currently, here is what is in focus:

  1. Stocks up as traders await Powell

  2. UK budget speech anticipated

  3. Egypt devalues pound, hikes rates

  4. China pledges economic support

  5. Crypto and tech stocks rally

Cannabis Capital Markets Price Overview:

The High Flyers yesterday were led by CordovaCann, which was up by just over 15%, and the Low Flyers were led by Body and Mind, which was down over 20% on the day. Here are the charts of the High and Low Flyers.

This week, the earnings season is heating up quickly. Here is a reminder of who is reporting this week.

Let's examine the highlights from companies in the TDR Comprehensive Cannabis Index!

  1. Grown Rogue (CSE: GRIN, OTC: GRUSF) enters the Illinois market via JV with EBC Ventures to acquire CannEquality, LLC, and develop a cannabis facility.

  2. Tilray (Nasdaq: TLRY, TSX: TLRY) expands Broken Coast Cannabis craft flower lineup with new Cherry Cheesecake and EmergenZ strains.

  3. Planet 13 (CSE: PLTH, OTC: PLNH) prices public offering at $0.60 per unit, aiming for $11.3 million in gross proceeds.

  4. Innocan Pharma (CSE: INNO, OTC: INNPF) announces a study showing LPT-CBD may offer new treatment avenues for neurological disorders.

  5. Glass House Brands (CBOE CA: GLAS.A.U, GLAS.WT.U, OTC: GLASF, GHBWF) plans to restate 2021, 2022 financials and Q1 2023 due to distributor revenue adjustments.

Cannabis: News and Studies

  1. In a study last month, CBD shows promising results in anxiety relief, outperforming THC, amid calls for further research and regulation. Read all about it on the TDR Website!

  2. I read such a fascinating article yesterday in Virginia's Cardinal News. If legalized, retail cannabis could surpass soybeans as Virginia's largest cash crop, potentially adding up to $500 million and 22,000 jobs to the state's economy.

Cannabis Policy: Highlights from our Friends at Marijuana Moment

  1. Massachusetts federal-funded workforce program can't support marijuana industry due to federal law, but they are told hemp is ok! Can you imagine people are still worried about hemp in their smoothie?

  2. McConnell's departure may not ease marijuana reform due to potential successors' similar stances.

  3. Marijuana users walk more and exercise as much as non-users, challenging stereotypes of inactivity.

  4. GOP senators question federal response to North Carolina tribe's plan for 4/20 marijuana sales.

  5. Virginia bill mandates resentencing for some past cannabis crimes, heading to the governor's desk.

  6. Hawaii Senate approves marijuana legalization bill, now heads to House.

Cryptocurrency

  1. Bitcoin reached a new high near $69,000 but then dropped below $60,000, highlighting the asset's volatility. Read all about it on the TDR Website!

  2. SEC delays decision on BlackRock and Fidelity's Ethereum ETFs, with final decision expected in May.

AI

  1. OpenAI commits to responsible AI in an open letter amid Musk's lawsuit.

  2. The US Patent Office rules AI cannot be an inventor, only humans can.

  3. Perplexity, an AI search startup, nears funding round at $1B valuation, aiming to challenge Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG, GOOGL) search dominance with direct answer AI models.

Big $$ Volume Big Caps

  1. CrowdStrike (NASDAQ:CRWD) outperforms Q4 expectations with $0.95 EPS and $845.3M revenue, and acquires Flow Security.

  2. Target (NYSE:TGT) announces Target Circle 360, a $49/year subscription for free same-day delivery, and plans for store renovations, driving a 12% stock surge.

  3. Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) CEO Cristiano Amon highlights generative AI as "revolutionary," aiming to integrate it into smartphones and PCs as "indispensable companions."

Micro and Small Cap REITS

  1. Angel Oak Mortgage REIT (NYSE:AOMR) reports Q4 GAAP net income of $28.6M, FY2023 total GAAP net income of $33.7M, and lower FY Distributable Earnings of $(28.1)M. Read all about it on the TDR Website!

Tomorrow we have Curaleaf's 4Q Earnings with CEO Matt Darin!

Our special episode of TDR's Trade To Black podcast breaks down the Virginia cannabis market. Our guest Anthony Coniglio, CEO of NewLake Capital, joins in as we dissect the next moves in Virginia.

Thanks for reading today’s Baked In—see you soon!

Written by Bill McNarland and Anthony Varrell