Good morning.
In this one, our partners at Lit Alerts have published The East Coast 8th Index and the impacts of 4/20 discounting are clear.
Plus, yesterday we had the chance to connect with Mike Gorenstein, CEO of Cronos Group and we dove deep into the possible impacts of rescheduling.
Let’s get to it.
-JR, JB
Today’s newsletter is 495 words or about an 4-minute read.
THIS NEWSLETTER MADE POSSIBLE BY:
⏪ In case you missed it
Cronos Group CEO Mike Gorenstein joined us on Monday’s Cultivated Live. We chatted about the company’s quarter, how he’s looking at rescheduling, and what they’re doing with $822 million on the balance sheet. $CRON ( ▼ 1.44% )
🚀 Deals, launches, partnerships
MJBiz-owner sells to Apollo
Emerald, the news-and-events business behind industry publication MJBizDaily and MJBizCon in Las Vegas, sold to Apollo Global Management, a large asset manager. Also of note: Emilie Lewis, the SVP of MJBiz, left the company earlier in May.
Apollo will also acquire Questex, an events business, and combine it with Emerald.
It remains to be seen what will happen to MJBizCon…
📊 Insights
The East Coast Eighth Index from Lit Alerts for May includes some deep discounting associated with 4/20.
Index highlights:
New York now leads regional pricing at $37.66 after New Jersey's steepest-ever monthly drop, driven by aggressive 4/20 discounting.
Four of five tracked states hit all-time lows in May — New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, and Massachusetts.
The spread between markets is narrowing and price convergence is accelerating.
And, to learn more about Lit Alerts and get a special offer only available to Cultivated readers, visit litalerts.com.
⏩ Quick hits
Short-seller Andrew Left heads to trial
Andrew Left, the short-seller and head of Citron Research, headed to trial on Monday in Los Angeles. You might remember his infamous 2018 short report against Cronos Group among other cannabis industry dealings at the height of pot-stock mania.
🔬 Science & research
Older adults turning to cannabis for sleep, pain and mental health
A University of Utah Health/University of Colorado Boulder study of 169 first-time cannabis buyers over 60 found that most were seeking alternatives to pharmaceuticals for sleep, pain, and mental health — not a high — and relied on word-of-mouth rather than doctors to guide their choices, according to research published in JAMA Network Open.
💸 Earnings roundup
Earnings continues:
Village Farms reported Q1 net income of $2.9 million on $50.2 million in revenue, or $0.03 per share, driven by a 171% jump in international export sales led by Germany. $VFF ( ▼ 2.62% )
📰 What we’re reading