On Monday, Aurora Cannabis became the first big marijuana producer to report its first financial results with almost a full quarter of sales in the Canadian recreational marijuana market. Aphria reported its fiscal 2019 second-quarter results in January, but Canada's legalization of recreational pot took effect only around halfway through the quarter.
Marijuana investors were eagerly awaiting Canopy Growth's (CGC -1.96%) fiscal third-quarter update, which, like Aurora's fiscal second quarter, ended on Dec. 31, 2018, and included around 11 weeks of recreational pot sales. Canopy announced its Q3 results Thursday evening. And those investors who expected a sales growth high weren't disappointed.
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Canopy reported Q3 net revenue of 83 million in Canadian dollars, or around US$62 million. This reflected a whopping 283% jump over the prior-year period. It was also 256% higher than Canopy's revenue in the previous quarter.
As expected, the recreational pot market fueled most of Canopy's sales growth. The company stated that 71% of its total revenue -- CA$57.7 million, or around US$43.4 million -- stemmed from the consumer market. Twenty percent of total revenue came from sales of medical cannabis products, with the remaining 9% of total revenue resulting from other sources, including sales of merchandise and devices.
Check out the latest Canopy Growth earnings call transcript.
Canopy's regulatory filings didn't reveal what its estimated share of the Canadian recreational marijuana market was in the quarter. However, Aurora Cannabis reported earlier in the week that it had a 20% market share with CA$21.6 million in recreational pot sales. Canopy's revenue indicates that it probably captured an impressive market share of greater than 50% of Canadian recreational marijuana sales.
Canopy's bottom line improved significantly from its big net loss in the second quarter of fiscal year 2019. The company posted earnings of CA$74.9 million (US$56.3 million), or CA$0.22 per share (US$0.17 per share). However, this came with an asterisk. Canopy continued to operate at a loss, but fair value changes on its financial liabilities, including its senior convertible notes and warrants the company held, more than offset its operating loss.
Thanks to a major investment from partner Constellation Brands, Canopy Growth had a cash stockpile, including cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities, totaling CA$4.9 billion (US$3.7 billion) as of Dec. 31, 2018. This puts Canopy in a better position than any other Canadian marijuana producer to fund operations and expansion efforts going forward.
