We recently compiled a list of the 10 Best Marijuana Stocks To Buy According to Hedge Funds. In this article, we are going to take a look at where SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ:SNDL) stands against the other marijuana stocks.
The United States of America is the country that consumes the most weed in the world. As we mentioned in our article – 30 Cities with the Highest Weed Consumption in the US – the American legal cannabis industry fared well in 2023 as legal sales across the 38 states that allow some form of regulated marijuana reached $28.8 billion, a 10.3% increase from the previous year. After an eventful 2024, the industry is expected to flourish even further. According to a report from the wholesale marketplace LeafLink, retail sales of cannabis reached a record $2.8 billion in October 2024, up 6.2% from last year. The data revealed that America’s total retail cannabis sales for this year are expected to be in the proximity of $32.6 billion.
The US legal weed industry also added 22,952 new jobs last year – a sign that the national business climate has somewhat stabilized following the turmoil of the previous two years. According to the 2024 Vangst Jobs Report, there were over 440,445 jobs supported by legal cannabis nationwide as of early 2024, an increase of 5.4% from 2023.
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Perhaps this year’s most positive news for the country’s legal cannabis sector came in April, when the Drug Enforcement Agency announced that it would act on the Biden administration’s call to reclassify marijuana from a ‘Schedule I’ drug, which includes heroin and LSD, to a less tightly regulated ‘Schedule III’ drug, which includes ketamine and some anabolic steroids. The decision marked a major policy shift by the federal government and while it would neither make the substance legal nor decriminalize it on a federal level, it would loosen quite a few restrictions around it and add fresh arguments for supporters of ballot measures seeking to legalize cannabis in states where it is still illegal. The process is lengthy and complex and will stretch well into the next year, but as the DEA finalizes its review, stakeholders from across the industry are closely monitoring developments.
Another encouraging development came in the form of a tweet from President-elect Donald Trump, in which he expressed support for a recreational cannabis legalization ballot initiative in his home state of Florida. He also backed up the marijuana industry’s access to the banking system and the ongoing federal cannabis rescheduling process. Whether this support will actually translate into action when Trump takes office for his second term remains to be seen.
However, 2024 ended with a slightly sour taste in the mouth of America’s cannabis stakeholders, as Florida’s cannabis legalization ballot measure failed to pass, despite historic levels of funding and a rigorous advertising campaign. This was a major blow to the industry as the Sunshine State was expected to become a $6 billion cannabis market by 2026, had Amendment 3 succeeded in meeting the required 60% threshold.
The setback inevitably impacted cannabis stocks, which witnessed a downturn following the news of the rejection. Amplify Alternative Harvest ETF, the first US ETF to target the global cannabis sector has fallen by over 31.6% since November 4, closing at $2.27 on December 24, 2024.
As of the writing of this article, 24 states have legalized recreational weed in America, in addition to the District of Columbia. However, possessing or selling marijuana remains a crime under federal law, punishable by prison time and fines.
Methodology:
To collect data for this article, we scanned Insider Monkey’s database of 900 hedge funds and picked the top 11 companies operating in the cannabis sector with the highest number of hedge fund investors. When two or more companies had the same number of hedge funds investing in them, we ranked them by the revenue of their last financial year instead. Following are the Best Marijuana Stocks According to Most Hedge Funds.
At Insider Monkey we are obsessed with the stocks that hedge funds pile into. The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
A close-up shot of a cannabis plant, showing its intricate details.
SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ:SNDL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 10
SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ:SNDL) is the largest private-sector liquor and cannabis retailer in Canada. The company also operates as a licensed cannabis producer and stands as one of the country’s premier vertically integrated cannabis enterprises.
SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ:SNDL) has been focused on revenue growth instead of profits, increasing its revenue from $60.9 million in 2020 to just over $909 million last year. However, the Calgary-based company still hasn’t turned a profit in its last four financial years. It seems like the strategy is changing now as the liquor and cannabis retailer announced a restructuring plan in July to help slash its annual expenses by $20 million and finally improve its profitability. Moreover, the company recently moved to privatize Nova through the acquisition of the remaining outstanding minority equity interest and also closed the acquisition of Indiva, enabling it to emerge as the leader in the Canadian infused edibles category.
SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ:SNDL) maintains a strong financial position and ended Q3 2024 with a cash balance of $263 million, up from $183 million in Q2, and continues to have zero outstanding debt. To return value to its shareholders, the company also announced a share repurchase program of around $70.3 million in November.
SNDL Inc. (NASDAQ:SNDL) is also well-positioned in the US cannabis market. The company, through its subsidiary SunStream USA, holds a two-thirds economic interest in Surterra Wellness, a notable medical cannabis operator in Florida with a 10% market share. Hence, the failure of Amendment 3 was a big blow to SNDL as it was aiming for substantial growth had recreational cannabis been legalized. However, its other US assets, including loans and properties in Michigan, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Texas, provide a safety net against potential downturns.
Overall SNDL ranks 4th on our list of the best marijuana stocks to buy according to hedge funds. While we acknowledge the potential of SNDL as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than SNDL but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.