Cannabis consumers aiming to buy goods from a Harvest Health & Recreation (HRVSF) dispensary in North Dakota are now out of luck. The company announced Monday that it has completed the sale of its two retail stores there, to what it described as a "local operator," without providing more details.
The price of the dispensaries, one of which is in the capital, Bismarck, and the other in the City of Williston, was not disclosed. Harvest Health only described it as "immaterial." The divestment leaves the company with no assets in the state.
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Harvest Health quoted its CEO Steve White as saying: "We are pleased to have completed this divestiture as part of our strategic plan. We will continue to allocate resources to growth opportunities in our core markets."
The company is headquartered and has most of its retail locations in one of those markets, Arizona, where it operates 15 dispensaries. This is a particularly opportune location just now, as Arizona is one of five states that legalized some form of marijuana consumption and sale last Election Day.
In Arizona's case, it sanctioned recreational marijuana after previously legalizing the drug for medicinal use.
Since Harvest Health is receiving an "immaterial" price for the North Dakota assets, it's reasonable to assume that the resources it devoted to those dispensaries are similarly modest. Still, it's encouraging to see the company put its money where its mouth is regarding concentration in promising markets (in North Dakota, recreational marijuana is still illegal).
Shareholders might have been hoping for a bit more dosh from the sale, though. On Monday, Harvest Health shares closed 6% lower, against only a 0.8% dip for the S&P 500 index.
