GTI, Trulieve, and Verano reported Q4 2023 earnings this week and the guys  dig deep into the results. To discuss Verano,  they are joined by the company's President Darren Weiss, CIO Aaron Miles, and CFO Brett Summerer. Plus, Morgan asks Grok about cannabis bear Mitch McConnell's retirement and what it means for the cannabis sector

This week's show begins by discussing the Benzinga cannabis conference in Los Angeles. Morgan and Jesse left inspired by the strength of brands, the quality of products, and the lack of focus on politics. Boris Jordan, Executive Chairman of Curaleaf, joined to discuss the recent events in Germany. He shares how he sees the program evolving and the economic opportunity for Curaleaf. 

Earnings season starts next week and the group weighs in on what they are looking for in the quarterly reports and calls. Price compression, revenue growth, cost controls, and how operators are handling 280E are all top of mind. The episode concludes with a new segment called Ask Grok (X's new AI tool) and this week we ask when cannabis will be rescheduled.

Morgan's on the road, so Jesse and Toby start the show reviewing the recent pullback in cannabis stocks and the corresponding drop in sentiment.  Toby also shares his experience at the Cannacord webinar and Jesse explains how the institutional investments in cannabis compare to more mature sectors. 

Sam Armenia, known as Sammy J on Twitter and  VP of Corporate Development at C21 Investments,  joins the show to share his experience as an investor and operator. We talk about the retail-focused investor base and how this may evolve in a Schedule III world. Sammy is working on a large project illustrating the impact of 280E removal and gives us his early read on the results and impacts for operators. He concludes by sharing his perspective on generating cash flow, versus investing growth and carrying more debt.  

Jesse, Toby, and Morgan begin the show by catching up on the latest cannabis-investing news. Sentiment around the timing of the DEA's response continues to improve and this is driving inflows into the US cannabis MSOS ETF. The group also covers the addition of Ascend to the MSOS portfolio. 

The bulk of the conversation is around the importance of valuations in the cannabis sector and which metrics are most important. They discuss the strengths and weaknesses of EV/sales, EV/AEBITDA, and EV/cash flow and how they are best when viewed together. Jesse shares his experience in the hedge-fund world blending valuations with growth prospects and how the qualitative assessment of the management team is important, especially in emerging sectors. 

The episode concludes with a quick discussion on capex budgets, which will be continued in the coming weeks. 

Jesse, Morgan, and Toby are back together to discuss the improving environment for US cannabis stocks. This is the fifth consecutive week of gains and broad US cannabis benchmarks are up over 50% this year. The boys analyze and appreciate the recent run in cannabis stocks and discuss how the space has evolved since the HHS announcement. They review the top performers AYR and Trulieve and those that have lagged like TerrAscend and The Cannabist. 

The conversation evolves into how the set of catalysts may play out in 2024, and the risk of remaining Schedule I or being moved to Schedule II. The conversation concludes by debating whether the space is investable with the 280E tax burden. 

This week's show starts with Jesse, Morgan, and Toby discussing the strong start to 2024. The group evaluates what's been driving the positive returns and inflows to the MSOS and MSOX ETFs. 

Verano President Darren Weiss and CIO Aaron Miles join 20 minutes into the episode. Darren and Aaron react to the contents of the HHS recommendation and also update us on the Boies lawsuit. We also dig into how 280E removal would impact Verano's business and potential priorities with the increased cash flow. 

Florida Governor DeSantis recently commented on adult use appearing on the Florida ballot in 2024 and the Verano team shares their thoughts on the process and how much the Florida market may grow if adult use is approved. The episode concludes with Aaron and Darren talking about the interest they are seeing from institutional investors since the HHS announcement. 

This week Jesse, Morgan, and Toby discussed the release of the HHS rescheduling recommendation. For the first half hour, Brady Cobb, Founder and CEO of Sunburn Cannabis, shares his perspective on the contents and timing of the release.  He also adds his thoughts on the implications of 280E removal and how he thinks about it from an operator's perspective. 

Higher Exchanges is recorded live on X and Boris Jordan, Executive Chairman of Curaleaf, was listening and joined for the latter half of the episode. Boris shares his thoughts after reading the full 252-page document, updates us on Curaleaf's roadshow, and how and when institutions may participate in the sector. 

This week's show begins by talking about how Jesse is seeing increased interest in companies wanting to tell their stories ahead of a potential increase in the investor base. This is complemented by observations that the cannabis capex cycle may be improving. 

On the state level, new Illinois data shows the state had a strong year, which is contrasted against Tilray's earnings report and the ongoing challenges in Canada. The conversation transitions into talking about the trend of equitizing debt and recent deals done by 4Front and Vext. 

The episode concludes by discussing the HHS saying they will release an unredacted version of its Schedule III recommendation and what this may mean for the timing of the DEA announcement. 

This week on Higher Exchanges the guys start by recapping the holiday break and how they were not surprised that we did not hear from the DEA. This transitions into a conversation about the "news" that the DEA is reviewing cannabis scheduling. While our listeners knew this, it was nice to see the uptick in attention by those following less closely. 

The heart of the episode is about what we are looking forward to in 2024 and what catalysts may drive returns. The DEA's response is number one on the list, followed by potential adult-use flips in Florida, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. Ohio's rollout also made the list and a revised Farm Bill possibly clamping down on the thriving hemp-derived cannabinoid market. 

The show concludes by sharing companies we are watching in 2023. Jesse shares his enthusiasm for California operator Leef Brands and Morgan covers why he thinks Ascend will have a strong 2024. 

This week Morgan and Jesse recap the top cannabis-investing stories from 2023. HHS announcing its recommendation for Schedule III was the consensus top pick, especially when paired with the Boies lawsuit. Other notable news includes Maryland launching adult-use sales, Ohio voting in favor of adult use, increased operational efficiencies, cannabis sales increasing while alcohol declines, and uplisting to the TSX.