Akanda
Akanda has seen its stock rise by around 7% this week as it rode the wave of positive sentiment sending US-listed cannabis stocks skyrocketing.
As reported by Business of Cannabis yesterday, US cannabis stock prices have rallied this week following the publication of the fully unredacted 252-page cannabis rescheduling recommendation, which experts have suggested would ‘all but ensure’ rescheduling takes place.
The NASDAQ-listed company, which has operations in the UK, Portugal and Germany, has enjoyed a continued run this month, seeing its stock rise by nearly 20% since mid-December.
This was in large part due to an announcement that Akanda had successfully avoided delisting from NASDAQ for a second time.
In July, the company announced that due to its stock price falling back below the exchange’s $1 minimum bid-price requirement, it was under threat of being delisted if it could not bring its share price back above $1 for 10 consecutive days before January 1, 2024.
It came less than six months after Akanda implemented a 1-for-10 reverse stock split on its ordinary shares to rescue it from being delisted, following another warning from the exchange in October 2022.
On January 04, 2024, Akanda announced that it had received a further 180 extension to regain compliance, pushing the deadline to July 1 2024.
The NASDAQ’s decision was reportedly based on the fact that Akanda continues to meet ‘all other applicable requirements’.
This came just days after Akanda published its ‘Unaudited Condensed Interim Consolidated Statements of Financial Position’, revealing sales in the six months to June 30, 2023, topped $1.4m, up significantly from the $73k made in the previous interim period.
Gross profits similarly grew significantly during the interim period, rising from $93k to $935k, but its (net) losses more than doubled from $2.6m to $5.9m.
Its Portuguese cultivation operation, Holigen, reportedly contributed almost the entirety of its income during the period, reporting $1.3m in revenues and a net loss of $2m in the six months to June 30, 2023.
According to the report, Akanda remains in legal disputes with a number of former directors, including Louisa Mojela who effectively tanked its operations in Lesotho.
On April 29, 2023, Trevor Scott, who was replaced as CFO in December after less than a year in the role, issued a claim against the company for amounts owing under his employment agreement totalling £420,659.95.
This claim has been denied in its entirety and a counter-claim has been lodged for losses caused by Mr Scott.
Similarly, the company’s former CEO Tejinder Virk issued a claim for ‘detriment and dismissal’ on May 12, 2023, which again has been ‘denied in its entirety’.
Kanabo
Kanabo has similarly seen its stock increase by around 10% this week, after announcing plans to launch a walk-in clinic.
The London Stock Exchange (LSE) listed medical cannabis company announced on Tuesday (January 16) that it had signed a new partnership with London-based City Dock Pharmacy.
This new partnership will see the pair launch a ‘walk-in pain clinic offering specialised medicines, including medicinal cannabis’.
Based in Wapping, London, patients will be able to either walk in or book appointments to see pharmacists who will ‘guide them through’ medical cannabis treatment options, offering support for ‘personalised treatment plans’ for chronic pain sufferers.
Kanabo says it will seek to replicate this model across more physical pharmacies in the near future, leveraging its extensive pharmacy network.
Avihu Tamir, Chief Executive Officer of Kanabo, commented: “This collaboration is a testament to our dedication to innovating in pain management. The combination of City Dock Pharmacy’s trusted presence and our expertise in medicinal cannabis paves the way for a new, holistic approach to treating pain and the opportunity to extend this to additional indications.”
Hellenic Dynamics
Greek cannabis cultivator Hellenic Dynamics also saw its share price increase around 15% this week.
The rise preceded an announcement this morning (January 17) that Hellenic has received a ‘letter of intent for funding’ from Greek multinational financial services company Piraeus Bank, which has now reportedly reviewed Hellenic’s five-year business plan.
Under the terms of the letter Piraeus will ‘consider’ providing Hellenic with loans to expand its cultivation building at its facility in Northern Greece, ‘export factoring’ for the company’s working capital, and letters of guarantee in respect of advance payment of certain Greek domestic grants which the Hellenic has applied for.
Dr Fillipos Papadopoulos, Executive Director of Hellenic Dynamics, said that Piraeus has been a ‘steady supporter’ of Hellenic, and has extensive experience within the agricultural industry ‘facilitating a great working relationship’.
“I am very pleased that we are now moving ahead with the various discussions pertaining to funding, the early payment of national grants the Company has applied for and of course the future expansion of our facility under our POD programmes.”
