Cannapany on March 22, 2019 No Comments
Aurora has been busy impressing the world
Aurora Cannabis (TSE: ACB) has started the year strong and already has several accomplishments to its credit since 2019 got underway. It is actively pursuing new deals, including ones recently signed in Portugal and Germany, and isn’t done yet. The company has repeatedly stated that its goal is to be a dominating force in the global cannabis market and it has shown that it is determined to make that claim come true.
Aurora has become popular in the investment community. GMP Securities reaffirmed its hold rating in the middle of February and, a few days later, Seaport Global Securities began covering the company. At the time, Seaport gave Aurora’s stock a “neutral rating.” Four days later, Jefferies Financial Group got involved, starting to cover the company, as well. It gave Aurora a “buy” rating. The Street, as February came to a close, wasn’t as kind and downgraded its rating of the company from a C to a D+. However, Cowen Inc. pushed things back up at the beginning of March when it gave Aurora a rating of outperform.
A number of hedge funds have been getting active in the company, as well. Virtu Financial LLC took a new position during the last quarter of 2018, acquiring $1.355 million in shares. Oppenheimer and Co. also acquired a new position during the same quarter, receiving shares worth $459,000 at the time. Wedbush Securities spent $402,000 in the quarter to acquire a new position, as well, and Nwam LLC spent $60,000 to add Aurora to its portfolio. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC took a new position in the quarter, purchasing $114,000 in stock.
Aurora isn’t only about expansion, though. The company is currently conducting a series of clinical trials on cannabis, which are in varying phases. It is leading Phase II trials for cannabis in cancer pain management, Epilepsy and Tourette ’s syndrome, and Phase III trials in a separate epilepsy study. It also has planned several other trials, which will involve genetics, chronic pain and multiple medical conditions, according to its corporate slide deck.
Aurora is one of the big three cannabis companies and the only one to have massive production capacity. Some analysts believe that it will be able to produce over one million kilograms as early as next year and, with its international partnerships, shouldn’t have any difficulty distributing all of it.
Congratulation!