Which Marijuana Stock Won Earnings Week -- Aurora Cannabis, Canopy Growth, Cronos Group, or Tilray?

For several leading Canadian marijuana growers, this was a big week. Four of the biggest players in the Canadian cannabis industry reported their quarterly results: Aurora Cannabis (ACB 18.15%), Canopy Growth (CGC 15.03%), Cronos Group (CRON 4.66%), and Tilray (TLRY).

Although quarterly updates are often referred to as earnings releases, the reality is that a lot more than just earnings (or lack thereof) are reported. These companies provided a wide range of financial and operational information related to the most recent quarter.

So which marijuana stock won the latest earnings week? Here's how they stacked up against each other in key areas.

Image source: Getty Images.

Revenue

Data sources: Company press releases and financial statements. CA = Canadian dollars. US = U.S. dollars.

Aurora Cannabis posted the strongest year-over-year revenue growth by far. However, it's important to note that the company's big revenue jump came primarily from its acquisitions. The prior-year period revenue total didn't include contributions from MedReleaf, Anandia, and Agropro.

Cronos Group achieved the highest organic revenue growth of the group. Canopy Growth disappointed investors with revenue in the latest quarter that was actually less than the previous sequential quarter and reflected relatively sluggish year-over-year growth. 

Earnings

Data sources: Company press releases and financial statements. N/A = Not Applicable. CA = Canadian dollars. US = U.S. dollars.

It seems evident which marijuana stock enjoyed the best bottom-line performance in the latest quarter -- at least at first glance. Aurora Cannabis racked up a massive profit. However, as my Motley Fool colleague Sean Williams pointed out, this profit wasn't all it appeared to be. 

Aurora's unrealized gain on derivatives and its one-time realized gain from its investment in The Green Organic Dutchman were the only reasons the company's profit looked so great. Without these items, Aurora's loss in the last quarter was nearly CA$112 million.

On the other hand, Canopy Growth posted the biggest loss in the company's history. But it really wasn't as bad as it looked. Canopy's stock-compensation expense from acquisition milestones, share-based compensation expense, and expense related to the change in the fair value of senior convertible notes were the biggest reasons behind the big loss. However, these were largely driven by Canopy stock soaring 63% during the quarter. 

Cash

Data sources: Company press releases and financial statements. Includes cash and cash equivalents. CA = Canadian dollars. US = U.S. dollars.

Canopy Growth enjoyed the biggest cash stockpile at the end of the latest quarter by far among its peers. But Canopy is in an even better position now. The CA$429.4 million figure doesn't include the impact of Constellation Brands' investment of $4 billion in a recently completed transaction.

Stock performance

Data source: YCharts. Data as of market close on Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018.

All of the marijuana stocks with earnings announcements this week suffered losses except for one -- Cronos Group. That makes Cronos the winner in terms of stock performance, even with its meager gain.

Overall winner

So which marijuana stock won earnings week? Cronos Group probably deserves the honor. The company posted strong revenue growth, its bottom-line deterioration wasn't nearly as bad as its peers, and its stock outperformed the rest.

But the main thing to know is this: The latest quarterly results really don't matter in the big scheme of things for any of these stocks. What does matter is how well each company is positioned to succeed as the global marijuana market grows. Aurora Cannabis, Canopy Growth, Cronos Group, and Tilray each can point to progress in the latest quarter in achieving success down the road.