Waiting to Buy Marijuana Stocks After Legalization Could Be a Costly Mistake
Cannabis is an industry that investors have been staying far away from for a while. A lack of any progress on federal marijuana legalization has led to some significant sell-offs. Since 2021, shares of Cresco Labs and Trulieve Cannabis are down about 88%. Curaleaf (OTC: CURLF) stock has cratered 77%. Green Thumb Industries has technically outperformed the sector, but investors aren't feeling great about its 73% decline, either.
It's been nothing short of a bloodbath for these stocks. Many investors appear to be waiting for more favorable market conditions, possibly even waiting for legalization to occur first. But waiting until legalization to invest in this growing industry could be a big mistake.
The temptation for investors may be to wait for legalization, but a legal pot market could drastically change the landscape for the cannabis industry. A big hurdle for multi-state operators (MSOs) in the U.S. right now is that they can't move products across state lines due to the federal ban on pot. They also have limited access to banking services, resulting in marijuana businesses carrying excessive levels of cash, which can make them targets for armed robbery.
Source Fool.com
