MW Cannabis stocks rally as analyst hails pot as an 'increasingly bipartisan' issue
By Steve Gelsi
Alliance Global Partners Aaron Grey sees Donald Trump's weekend statement on cannabis as a 'step forward'
Cannabis stocks posted solid gains onTuesday in the first trading day for U.S. stocks after Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump signaled support for adult-use legalization in Florida.
Marijuana has emerged as an "increasingly bipartisan topic' during this year's U.S. presidential campaign, Alliance Global Partners analyst Aaron Grey said in a research note on Tuesday.
Trump said Saturday on his Truth Social platform that an adult-use referendum on the November ballot in Florida is likely to get the required 60% approval vote "whether people like it or not."
Someone in Florida should not be a criminal when cannabis is legal is so many other states, Trump said.
"We do not need to ruin lives and waste taxpayer dollars arresting adults with personal amounts of it on them," Trump said.
Legalization should be banned in public spaces to avoid the scent of marijuana, Trump said.
The AdvisorShares Pure U.S. Cannabis ETF MSOS rose 2.5% and the Amplify Alternative Harvest EFT MJ moved up by 1.6%.
Among individual stocks, Curaleaf Holdings Inc. (CURLF) rose 2.1%, Verano Holdings Corp. (VRNOF) moved up by 5.2%, Cresco Labs Inc. (CRLBF) rose 3.4%, Trulieve Cannabis Corp. (TCNNF) (CA:TRUL) rose 6.9% and Green Thumb Industries Inc. (GTBIF) moved up by 2.2%.
The statements did not amount to explicit support of cannabis legalization, but they marked a "step forward" from Trump's previous view on pot that was more limited to medical use, Grey said.
"Bigger picture, we believe this builds support for cannabis legalization as a bipartisan issue among politicians and voters," Grey said.
At last check 70% of American and 55% of Republicans support marijuana legalization, according to the most recent Gallup poll results.
Trump had said early last month that he was preparing a statement on cannabis in Florida and that he was starting to agree more with some pot reforms.
Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris said Trump made a "brazen flip-flop" on cannabis.
"Trump now suggests he is for legalizing marijuana - but as President, his own Justice Department cracked down on marijuana offenses," according to a statement from the Harris election camp.
While Trump's Attorney General Jeff Sessions attempted to clamp down on state-legal cannabis when Trump was in office, such a path appears to be less likely now because of support on both sides of the aisle for pot, Grey said.
Also read: Home Depot scraps marijuana drug tests for employees: report
-Steve Gelsi
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September 03, 2024 09:52 ET (13:52 GMT)
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