Early signs are that cannabis is still on consumers’ shopping lists, even as inflation hurts their wallets. But pot growers will struggle to match the impressive pricing power of other sin stocks like tobacco.
The U.S. cannabis market has been through downturns before, just never as a legal industry. Colorado, the first state to allow adult-use cannabis sales, only launched in 2014. If marijuana companies can show that demand for their products is as steady and reliable as for tobacco or alcohol in a recession, share prices could get a much-needed boost. The AdvisorShares Pure Cannabis ETF that tracks a basket of U.S. pot stocks is down 53% this year compared with the flat performance of the S&P consumer staples index.
