Cannabis and Hemp Sector Ideas

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Aphria - >>> Marijuana stocks to watch: Aphria is positioning itself as a low-cost pot producer


By Max A. Cherney

Oct 20, 2018


https://www.marketwatch.com/story/marijuana-stocks-to-watch-aphria-is-positioning-itself-as-a-low-cost-pot-producer-2018-10-16


Aphria says it can grow pot for less than C$2 a gram thanks to its strategy of using only greenhouses for growing. Aphria grows cannabis in greenhouses, a key part of its strategy.

Founded by two greenhouse operating veterans in the farming town of Leamington, Ontario, Aphria Inc. has grown into a company with a market of more than $6 billion thanks to a focus on cheaper production of cannabis.

Thus far, Aphria APH, (APHQF) -4.75% has been active in the medical cannabis market. But, like rivals such as Canopy Growth Corp. CGC, -1.95% WEED, -1.75% and Aurora Cannabis Inc. US:ACBFF , ACB, -3.87% the company has made a hard push to increase production of its recreational products in the months following Canada’s decision to legalize the drug starting Wednesday.

Aphria finished the quarter with a healthy C$314 million in cash and marketable securities and C$13 million in quarterly sales. Like other pot companies such as Aurora, Aphria’s bottom line benefited from its investments in other pot stocks, banking $33 million in gains from its investment portfolio in the fiscal first quarter, primarily from gains in Liberty Health Sciences LHSIF, -4.95% and Hiku Brands.

Chief Executive Vic Neufeld has roots in Leamington, and has set out to produce cannabis at a lower cost than competitors.

What business is Aphria in: medical or recreational?

Aphria is engaged in both the medical and recreational cannabis markets. While the company has been selling medical cannabis since its launch, on its first-quarter earnings call, executives said that the company was investing heavily in adult recreational marijuana. In addition to expanding the company’s facilities, including acquiring the necessary permits, Aphria has been hiring staff, especially in sales and marketing, and is building out its brand portfolio. Neufeld says that the company’s brands separate Aphria from its competition.

How much weed is it growing and at what cost?

In its fiscal first quarter, Aphria sold the equivalent of 1,778.2 kilograms of marijuana. The company sold its pot at an average of C$8.99 a gram, down from C$9.25 a gram, in the fourth quarter. An increase in wholesale orders was partly responsible for the price difference. To produce the cannabis, Aphria’s “all-in” costs were C$1.83 a gram, up from C$1.60 the previous quarter, and its cash costs to produce a dried gram of pot were C$1.30, up from 90 cents.

Neufeld says the company’s greenhouse strategy — versus growing pot inside facilities, or outdoors — is what will allow it to produce high-quality, potent cannabis at a low cost.

At the moment, Aphria says it can grow about 32,500 kilograms of pot a year.

How much cannabis can it eventually grow?

Aphria hopes to grow much, much more pot, however. Executives said on the company’s first-quarter earnings call that the company was on track to grow 255,000 kilograms a year as more of its facilities become operational. Depending on regulatory approvals and other factors, Aphria said it expects to reach that volume in January or February of next year.

Supply agreements

Aphria has signed supply deals with all of Canada’s provinces and the Yukon territory.

Like many Canadian cannabis firms, Aphria has global ambitions. At the moment, the company does not have Good Manufacturing Practice certification from the European Union — a requirement to export medical weed to that region — but is weeks from attaining it. The company has operations in Argentina, Colombia, and Jamaica, and has an option to enter Brazil. Beyond Latin America, Aphria made a strategic investment in an Australian company and has received a cannabis license in Malta.

In the past, Aphria had substantial holdings in the U.S. But the company was forced by TMX, the operator of the Toronto Stock Exchange, to divest those holdings because, while pot remains illegal under U.S. federal law, it ran the risk of having its stock delisted.

Aphria has also signed a deal with Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits Inc. to distribute its recreational products in Canada.

Intellectual property

The company has an in-house research and development facility it calls the Aphria Innovation Hub that it uses to design and test new products. In addition, Aphria has clinical research partnerships with more than 10 Canadian universities.

Neufeld says that Aphria doesn’t hold patents itself, but rather has access to intellectual property through its investments and partnerships.

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