cannabis market insights colorado wholesale flower trends … · 07/02/2019  · flower trends in...

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CANNABIS MARKET INSIGHTS FEBRUARY 7, 2019 Vol. I BOULDER NEW YORK LOS ANGELES (303) 325-3501 [email protected] COLORADO WHOLESALE FLOWER TRENDS Price Declines to Continue: Growing Pains on the Path to Market Equilibrium Colorado’s wholesale cannabis flower prices will see continued pressure in 2019. The state’s wholesale Average Market Rate (AMR) prices, a trailing wholesale price indicator issued by the Colorado Dept. of Revenue, increased in 1Q19 due to mandatory pesticide testing that increased costs for cultivators in August 2018. We project further wholesale price declines in 2019 despite the recent uptick. In partnership with Apex Trading, a 24/7 online marketplace that connects cultivators with wholesale buyers and retailers, we analyzed wholesale cannabis flower trends in the Colorado adult use market. Our analysis confirms the wholesale price increase in 2H18 and shows more recent wholesale price declines that point to further downside in 2019. Sources: Apex Trading sample data, 7thirty Capital Colorado’s wholesale flower price has declined markedly since the legalization of adult use sales in January 2014. The proliferation of industrial-scale indoor and light-deprivation greenhouse grow operations have increased the volume and efficiency of cannabis production, enabling multiple growing cycles per year versus the annual outdoor fall harvest. As larger-scale cultivation ramps up in legal US states, we expect a trend of consolidation and an effort to lower production costs. Investment opportunities will arise as cultivators, processors, wholesalers, and retailers seek technologies and other solutions to maximize production and optimize the marketplace. The Colorado Average Market Rate (AMR) wholesale price fell sharply in 2018. The AMR is used to determine taxes due for vertically integrated cultivators. The Colorado AMR for flower bottomed at $759/lb. in 4Q18, sliding 42% y/y from $1,305/lb. in 4Q18. The AMR peaked at $2,007/lb. in early 2015 when cultivation licenses numbered just 419. Total licenses peaked at 1,511 in January 2018 and declined slightly to 1,499 by year-end. However, we note that many Colorado cultivation licenses are now dormant. Source: Colorado Department of Revenue (Marijuana Enforcement Division) The Colorado flower AMR increased as of January 1, 2019, up 3% to $781/lb. vs. $759/lb. in 4Q18. The AMR for trim increased 22% to $396/lb. versus $325/lb. reflecting both higher costs and greater statewide demand for extracts and edibles. Based on the 15% excise tax, the flower tax increased $3.30 to $117.15/lb. and the tax for trim increased $10.65 to $59.40/lb. Cultivators incur higher costs for testing, squeezing margins. Effective August 1, 2018, Colorado’s Marijuana Enforcement Division implemented new mandatory pesticide testing for recreational and medical cultivators. Testing can cost more than $100 per strain, and requires cultivators to submit a sample of each strain every 30 days. While testing increased costs for cultivators already contending with thin margins, it has been a boon to state-licensed testing labs. This trend highlights an attractive area of cannabis investment, as pesticide and microbial detection technologies will remain key to product validation. Will Colorado wholesale prices find equilibrium in 2019? Probably not. We expect wholesale flower prices to remain depressed and to test new lows in 2019. However, price declines and narrowing margins are necessary features of this maturing market that will create exciting opportunities for investment.

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Page 1: CANNABIS MARKET INSIGHTS COLORADO WHOLESALE FLOWER TRENDS … · 07/02/2019  · flower trends in the Colorado adult use market. Our analysis confirms the wholesale price increase

CANNABISMARKETINSIGHTS

FEBRUARY7,2019Vol.I

BOULDER NEW YORK LOS ANGELES (303) 325-3501 [email protected]

COLORADOWHOLESALEFLOWERTRENDSPriceDeclinestoContinue:GrowingPainsonthePathtoMarketEquilibrium

Colorado’swholesalecannabisflowerpriceswillseecontinuedpressurein2019.Thestate’swholesaleAverageMarketRate(AMR)prices,atrailingwholesalepriceindicatorissuedbytheColoradoDept.ofRevenue,increasedin1Q19duetomandatorypesticidetestingthatincreasedcostsforcultivatorsinAugust2018.Weprojectfurtherwholesalepricedeclinesin2019despitetherecentuptick.

InpartnershipwithApexTrading,a24/7onlinemarketplacethatconnectscultivatorswithwholesalebuyersandretailers,weanalyzedwholesalecannabisflowertrendsintheColoradoadultusemarket.Ouranalysisconfirmsthewholesalepriceincreasein2H18andshowsmorerecentwholesalepricedeclinesthatpointtofurtherdownsidein2019.

Sources:ApexTradingsampledata,7thirtyCapital

Colorado’swholesaleflowerpricehasdeclinedmarkedlysincethelegalizationofadultusesalesinJanuary2014.Theproliferationofindustrial-scaleindoorandlight-deprivationgreenhousegrowoperationshaveincreasedthevolumeandefficiencyofcannabisproduction,enablingmultiplegrowingcyclesperyearversustheannualoutdoorfallharvest.Aslarger-scalecultivationrampsupinlegalUSstates,weexpectatrendofconsolidationandanefforttolowerproductioncosts.Investmentopportunitieswillariseascultivators,processors,wholesalers,andretailersseektechnologiesandothersolutionstomaximizeproductionandoptimizethemarketplace.

TheColoradoAverageMarketRate(AMR)wholesalepricefellsharplyin2018.TheAMRisusedtodeterminetaxesdueforverticallyintegratedcultivators.TheColoradoAMRforflowerbottomedat

$759/lb.in4Q18,sliding42%y/yfrom$1,305/lb.in4Q18.TheAMRpeakedat$2,007/lb.inearly2015whencultivationlicensesnumberedjust419.Totallicensespeakedat1,511inJanuary2018anddeclinedslightlyto1,499byyear-end.However,wenotethatmanyColoradocultivationlicensesarenowdormant.

Source:ColoradoDepartmentofRevenue(MarijuanaEnforcementDivision)

TheColoradoflowerAMRincreasedasofJanuary1,2019,up3%to$781/lb.vs.$759/lb.in4Q18.TheAMRfortrimincreased22%to$396/lb.versus$325/lb.reflectingbothhighercostsandgreaterstatewidedemandforextractsandedibles.Basedonthe15%excisetax,theflowertaxincreased$3.30to$117.15/lb.andthetaxfortrimincreased$10.65to$59.40/lb.

Cultivatorsincurhighercostsfortesting,squeezingmargins.EffectiveAugust1,2018,Colorado’sMarijuanaEnforcementDivisionimplementednewmandatorypesticidetestingforrecreationalandmedicalcultivators.Testingcancostmorethan$100perstrain,andrequirescultivatorstosubmitasampleofeachstrainevery30days.Whiletestingincreasedcostsforcultivatorsalreadycontendingwiththinmargins,ithasbeenaboontostate-licensedtestinglabs.Thistrendhighlightsanattractiveareaofcannabisinvestment,aspesticideandmicrobialdetectiontechnologieswillremainkeytoproductvalidation.

WillColoradowholesalepricesfindequilibriumin2019?Probablynot.Weexpectwholesaleflowerpricestoremaindepressedandtotestnewlowsin2019.However,pricedeclinesandnarrowingmarginsarenecessaryfeaturesofthismaturingmarketthatwillcreateexcitingopportunitiesforinvestment.

Page 2: CANNABIS MARKET INSIGHTS COLORADO WHOLESALE FLOWER TRENDS … · 07/02/2019  · flower trends in the Colorado adult use market. Our analysis confirms the wholesale price increase

MARKETMONITOR

FEBRUARY7,2019Vol.I

BOULDER NEW YORK LOS ANGELES (303)325-3501 [email protected]

ReturnsofSelectedCannabisETF’s&S&P500,2018-Present GlobalLegalCannabisSpending,2017-2022E

Source:TradingView

Year-to-date,Cannabis-relatedETFs,includingtheETFMGAlternativeHarvest(MJ)ETF(+31%)andtheHorizonsMarijuanaLifeSciencesIndex(HMLSF)ETF(+40%),haveoutperformedtheS&P500Indexwhichhadareturnof9%.

S&P500

MJ

HMLSF

Source:BDSAnalytics

Globallegalcannabisspendingisforecasttoincreaseata27%CAGRfrom$12.9Bin2018to$32Bby2022,accordingtoBDSAnalytics.U.S.spendingisprojectedtoincreaseata21%CAGRfrom$11Bin2018to$23.4Bby2022.

CanadianLicensedProducersCompany StockPrice MktCap($B) YTDReturn 52-wkReturn* 52-wkHigh 52-wkLowCanopyGrowthCorp. $46.53 $16.07 66% 91% $59.25 $18.93AuroraCannabisInc. $7.57 $7.68 47% 34% $12.52 $4.05TilrayInc. $78.15 $7.48 12% 163% $300.00 $20.10CronosGroupInc. $19.65 $3.72 70% 161% $25.10 $5.12AphriaInc $9.70 $2.47 62% 22% $16.86 $3.75Source:YahooFinance,GoogleFinance,7thirtydata.*52-weekreturnorreturnsincetradingbegan.

PrivateCannabisMarketActivityCompany Location Date Category DealType Amount

($M)IntegratedCBD Scottsdale,AZ 2/4/19 CBD/Hemp Angel $3.35BlühenBotanicals Knoxville,TN 2/1/19 CommercialHemp Angel $4.5CannamedicalPharma Cologne,Germany 1/29/19 MedicalCannabis SeriesA $17.48Socati Woodburn,OR 1/29/19 Hemp/Processing Pvt.Equity $33.0Vangst Denver,CO 1/24/19 OnlineRecruiting SeriesA $10.0Caliva SanJose,CA 1/24/19 Retail/Cultivation Other $75.0GreenReliefacq.BodhiR&D Toronto,ON 1/22/19 DrugDiscovery Acquisition $30.08Source:PitchBook,companypressreleases.

PublicCannabisMarketActivity

Company Location Date Category DealType Amount($M)

GreenGrowthacq.DesertRose Phoenix,AZ 1/30/19 MedicalCannabis PendingAcq. $12.35SlangWorldwide Toronto,ON 1/29/19 Consumer/Beverages IPO $50.63PlusProductsDebtOffering SanMateo,CA 1/28/19 Edibles Conv.Debt $15.1Khironacq.NettaGrowth Vancouver,BC 1/25/19 MedicalCannabis PendingAcq. $13.7AuroraCannabisDebtOffering Edmonton,AB 1/24/19 Cultivation Conv.Debt $345Tilrayacq.NaturaNaturals Nanaimo,BC 1/22/19 Cultivation/Retail PendingAcq. $52Auroraacq.WhistlerMedicalMJ Edmonton,AB 1/14/19 Cultivation/Retail PendingAcq. $132Source:PitchBook,companypressreleases.

Page 3: CANNABIS MARKET INSIGHTS COLORADO WHOLESALE FLOWER TRENDS … · 07/02/2019  · flower trends in the Colorado adult use market. Our analysis confirms the wholesale price increase

FEBRUARY7,2019Vol.I

BOULDER NEW YORK LOS ANGELES (303)325-3501 [email protected]

7THIRTYGROUP MICAHTAPMAN,FundManager

7thirtyGroupprovidesafullrangeofcapitalservicestoinvestorsandcompaniesinthefrontierlegalcannabisandancillarymarkets.7thirtyidentifiesinvestmentopportunitiesinemergingcannabistechcompaniesrelatedtoag-tech,medtech,retail,e-commerce,SaaSsolutions,deeptechresearch,andmarketplaces.Ourteam’shands-onapproachtoeverydealmeansweknowtheins-and-outsofthemarketfromwholesalepricedynamicstolegalandregulatorychallenges.Weworkwiththeleadingcompaniestodevisesmartstrategiestothriveinanever-changingmarket.

7thirtyOpportunityFundisledbyMicahTapman,themostactiveearly-stagecannabistechnologyinvestorintheUnitedStates.Priortofounding7thirty,Micahwasaco-founderandmanagingdirectoratCanopyBoulder,whereheledinvestmentsinover90cannabis-relatedcompanies.Severalofthosecompaniesarenowrecognizedleadersinthecannabismarket,includingWurk,BDSAnalyticsandFrontRangeBiosciences.MicahwasrecentlynamedoneofthetwentyrisingstarsinthecannabisinvestmentworldbyBusinessInsider.

YOURLONG-TERMSTRATEGICPARTNER

AdvisoryServices• Buy&SellSideStrategicPlanning• FundraisingStrategies• M&AExecution• CorporateRestructuring• ExpansionStrategies

CapitalInvestments• EquityInvestments

- 7thirtyOpportunityFund• DebtStructures• High-YieldDebt

InvestorRepresentation• InvestmentIdentification&Sourcing• DueDiligence• DealStructure&Execution• OngoingRepresentation&Management

7THIRTYOPPORTUNITYFUND

The7thirtyOpportunityFundisanearly-stagegrowthfundtargetingprivatecannabis-relatedtechnologyinvestmentsaroundtheworld.ThefundisalliedwiththeCanopyBoulderbusinessacceleratorthataffordsunparalleleddealflowandaccesstotop-tierinvestments.HeadquarteredinBoulder,Colorado,7thirtyCapitalisideallysituatedtocapitalizeonthe30%averagecompoundannualgrowthinthelegalcannabisindustry.Ahighlydisciplinedinvestmentapproachallowsthefundtobuildadiversifiedportfolioofexceptionalinvestmentspoisedtogrowwiththeindustry.

AccreditedinvestorsworldwidehaveeasyaccesstothisexceptionalopportunitythroughtheOurCrowdinvestmentplatform.TheOurCrowdpartnershipsimplifiestheinvestmentprocessandprovidestheFundwithadditionalinternationaldealflow,includingIsrael’sbest-in-marketcannabisresearchandtechnologycompanies.

*Note:onlyaccreditedinvestorsmayinvestinthefund.

7THIRTYOpportunityFund*

Page 4: CANNABIS MARKET INSIGHTS COLORADO WHOLESALE FLOWER TRENDS … · 07/02/2019  · flower trends in the Colorado adult use market. Our analysis confirms the wholesale price increase

FEBRUARY7,2019Vol.I

BOULDER NEW YORK LOS ANGELES (303)325-3501 [email protected]

7THIRTYCAPITALINVESTMENTBANKING

7thirtyCapitalprovidescorporatefinanceservicestogrowthcompaniesactiveintheemergingcannabiseconomy.Theteamhasraisedoverabilliondollarsprimarilyforcompaniesactiveincommoditiesandemerging/frontiermarkets.Ourcommoditiesexpertiseandexperienceinnavigatingfast-growing,complexmarketsinemergingjurisdictionstranslatewelltothecannabisspace.

PRIVATEEQUITY

7thirtyCapitalplacesequityincompanieswithestablishedoperatinghistoriesand/orcompetitiveadvantages(includingphysicalassets,technology,know-how,equipment,intellectualproperty,oranestablishedcustomerbase).Weofferassistanceinraisingcapitalaswellasstrategicandtechnicaladvisoryservicesinordertodevelopself-sustainingbusinessesorbusinesscapableofattractingexternalfinancing.

The7thirtyteamwillprovidethecapital,humanresourcesandbusinessdevelopmentskillsnecessarytogrowworld-classbusinessesinthecannabisspaceandhelpcreateexitsthroughtradesalesorpublicofferings.Issuerswillbevettedfromtheperspectiveofprincipalinvestorsand,inmostcases,7thirtyOpportunityFundwilldeploycapitalintransactions.Thegroup'sabilitytoparticipatewithowncapitalindealssignalsastrongvoteofconfidencetoinvestors.

CONVERTIBLEDEBT

7thirtyCapitalalsoadvisesonstructureddealssuchasconvertiblebonds.Asaprincipal,themerchantbankcanoffercompetitiveinterestratesonconvertibledebt,pricingtheupsidefromequitykickers.

CANNABISMARKETINVESTMENTLANDSCAPE

Cultivation Processing Retail Consumption AgricultureTechnology

MedicalTechnology

LicensedproductionWholesaleSeedsClonesGenetics

ExtractionHarvesttechTrimtech

DispensariesMedicalCentersHRsystems

BrandsPremiumproductsDevicesVaporizersAccessories

GrowsystemsGreenhousesLightingsystemsHydroponicsAutomationGrowingMedia

PharmaceuticalsAPIdevelopmentDrugapplicationsCannabidiolIP

CannabisProducts Testing AncillaryProducts

&Services Consulting Financing Hemp&CBD

InfusedproductsEdiblesTopicalsDrinks

ProductvalidationGeneticverificationPesticidetestingMicrobialdetection

InsurancePackagingSeed-to-salePOSsystemsTransportationSecurity

ResearchMkt.IntelligenceOperationsComplianceRegulatoryAccountingTaxStrategyLicensing/Zoning

GrowFinancingHarvestFinancingEquipmentLeasing

Food&BeverageBuildingMaterialsFiberPaperFuels