For a long time, Canadian pot producer Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC) has been known as a bellwether company among cannabis companies. Because of this, CGC stock has a very large market capitalization and is heavily traded, but is also heavily shorted.
Indeed, the short sellers seem to have taken control of CGC stock since early 2019. Much of the decline in CGC, and in pot stocks generally, had to do with the market’s disappointment in Cannabis 2.0 (the Canadian rollout of cannabis derivatives such as topicals, edibles, beverages and concentrates).
Next, as if the marijuana industry needed more problems, came the onset of the novel coronavirus. Some commentators predicted that everyone would stay home and smoke weed all day during the lockdowns. I have no doubt that some folks partook of the herb, but it wasn’t enough to bolster the CGC stock price.
Given these discouraging developments, it’s natural to conclude that the mainstreaming of marijuana has stalled. Yet, there’s a potent partnership in the works that could galvanize CGC stock holders and even the pro-pot movement as a whole.
A Closer Look at CGC Stock
But first, a nod to the technical traders out there. You know by now what the deal is with CGC stock. There were three distinct attempts to push CGC above $50 in 2018 and 2019, and those attempts failed spectacularly.
The third bull run peaked in April of last year, and the decline afterwards was particularly painful. Sure, the coronavirus crisis contributed to the drawdown, but the free fall was already in effect by that point.
It takes a bold, future-facing vision to see the glass as half full here. Perhaps this could be the storm before the rainbow. To put it another way, investors now have a chance to buy CGC stock at late-2017 prices.
I wouldn’t recommend simply buying a stock because it’s cheap, though. There has to be a reason to believe that Canopy’s brand, and cannabis generally, has truly arrived as a culturally acceptable and potentially lucrative commodity. Is it possible?
Yes, This Actually Happened
Call it the seventh sign of the apocalypse, or hell freezing over. The unimaginable has happened in 2020, and I’m not talking about the pandemic.
Famously squeaky-clean lifestyle guru Martha Stewart, of all people, has just launched a line of wellness supplements infused with cannabidiol or CBD. In case you weren’t already aware, CBD is derived from the cannabis sativa plant.
If you’re fairly young, then you might only know Stewart as a woman who went to jail for some financial funny business. But I’m old enough to remember when Stewart was the epitome of domestic living. For years, she was a symbol of mainstream America.
Now, Stewart and Marquee Brands are partnering with Canopy Growth to dose America with CBD-enhanced gummies, oil drops and soft gels.
An Unusual Endorsement
Clearly, this is no ordinary celebrity endorsement. We’re not talking about well-known partakers like Snoop Dogg or Willie Nelson.
By Canopy Growth CEO David Klein’s own admission, Stewart is “someone who people turn to for advice on living well.” She’s been the Pied Piper of middle-class domestic dwellers for decades. Somehow, even a prison term didn’t tarnish her image too much.
Maybe it’s because I’m not a millennial or zoomer, but I never could have imagined something like this ever happening. Just for the shock value, I invite you to check out the press release associated with the CBD product rollout. You might enjoy its rather surreal picture of Stewart displaying her hemp products along with enough citrus fruits to induce a vitamin C overload.
Comical observations aside, I see this as a turning point for Canopy. And since Canopy’s a market leader, Stewart’s endorsement could have positive industry-wide ripple effects.
The Bottom Line
It’s stunning to witness a celebrity of Stewart’s caliber jumping on board the CBD train. Yet, it’s an indisputable piece of evidence that hemp’s normalization has fully arrived.
Hopefully, this will be the catalyst that long-term CGC stock investors so badly needed. Make no mistake, as investing in Canopy Growth will still be a speculative bet. Nonetheless, the mainstreaming of pot is fully in progress and that’s bullish for Canopy.
On the date of publication, David Moadel did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
