Shares of the company fell in early trading after Canopy Growth reported a wider-than-expected fourth-quarter loss, while net revenues saw an uptick that beat expectations. The loss for the three months ending in March 2019 came in at $0.98 a share, well short of the $0.32 loss expected by analysts.
Net revenues of $94.1 million were reported, up from $22.8 million a year earlier and more than the $92.6 million expected by analysts. However, net losses ballooned to $323.4 million, compared with a loss of $54.3 million for the same period last year.
Canopy Growth said it sold 9,326 kilograms or kilogram equivalents of cannabis in the fourth quarter. That’s up from 2,528 kilogram or kilogram equivalents sold in the same period last year.
On an adjusted basis, Canopy’s loss before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization amounted to $98 million, compared with its $21.7 million loss a year ago, as its operating expenses grew by more than 300 percent.
As for the expenditures, Canopy’s Co-chief executive Bruce Linton assured investors that while the company is spending aggressively to secure a dominant position in global cannabis, it won’t need to do so forever.
“We’re certainly not tracking on the Amazon model, but you see the value of investing when people transform their behaviors. We’re at the front of that,” Linton told analysts on a conference call Friday morning. He was referring to 3-commerce giant Amazon’s aggressive investments. Linton said, “You’ve seen, I think, the bottom of our margin trough.”
CTV News Canada reported that in late morning trading, Canopy’s stock slipped to $53.20 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. On the New York Stock Exchange – Canopy Growth Corp. stock has slipped to $39.96, a loss of 8.58 percent as of 12:21 p.m. June 21.
