You’re reading this week’s edition of the New Cannabis Ventures weekly newsletter, which we have been publishing since October 2015. The newsletter includes unique insight to help our readers stay ahead of the curve as well as links to the week’s most important news. We no longer send these by email as we did in the past, but we post this and all of the newsletters on our website here.
Friends,
The Global Cannabis Stock Index keeps posting new all-time lows. It remains a tough time to be a cannabis investor! Times seem to be getting tougher for all investors, as the S&P 500 has moved from an all-time high in February to a price that is now almost 10% lower, bordering on a “correction.” The S&P 500 is now down 4.8%, while the GCSI has dropped 21.4%. The MSOs are getting pounded worse, with AdvisorShares Pure US Cannabis ETF (NYSE Arca: MSOS) down 25.7%.
One area that has been hit hard has been the alcohol industry. I own some Boston Beer (NYSE: SAM) in my IRA, recently purchased, and it has dropped 22.2% year-to-date, similar to cannabis stocks. Like the MSOs, SAM soared when the pandemic hit, and it has plunged subsequently. Over the past 4 years, MSOS has declined 93.9%, but SAM has dropped 79.1%. Green Thumb Industries (OTC: GTBIF) has dropped exactly as much as SAM since 3/11/21. Over the past 5 years, GTBIF has gone up, while SAM has dropped:
I called out the GTBIF stock in a newsletter in February for being overloved by investors, and it has dropped by 5.8% since then, while SAM has gained 2.5%. GTI has an excellent balance sheet, as I said then, and it got even better in Q4. Still, the company does have net debt. SAM has net cash. SAM is smaller than most alcohol companies, with a market cap of $2.6 billion. Its peers have mixed performance in 2025.
I am not suggesting that cannabis investors abandon the sector for alcohol companies, but they should keep in mind that the two sectors are experiencing some of the same challenges. This all goes back to 2020, when the pandemic hit. Alcohol companies and cannabis companies experienced a spike in sales (and stock prices!). Everyone talks about falling alcohol sales, but the New York Times published a piece on COVID that shows how they are pulling back but shot way ahead of the trend:
I think that cannabis investors need to worry about a lot of things these days, but the sales trends are bothering people a bit too much perhaps. The cannabis sector is cheap but very risky. Investors can find alcohol companies that have better balance sheets, that trade on the NYSE or NASDAQ and that aren’t federally illegal and subject to 280E taxation. Maybe Tilray Brands, which is slashing its debt and building its alcohol business, is doing things right!
Sincerely,
Alan
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New Cannabis Ventures publishes curated articles as well as exclusive news. Here is what we published this past week:
Exclusives
Get Ready For More Problems in Florida
Financial Reports
Ascend Beats Expectations in Q4
Cresco Labs Q4 Revenue and Profitability Slip
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