The share price of marijuana stock HEXO (HEXO) closed 3.1% lower Monday on the back of the company's latest earnings release, which was published this morning.
For Q1 of fiscal 2020, HEXO posted net revenue of 14.5 million Canadian dollars ($11.0 million), which was down from the previous quarter's CA$15.4 million, although well higher than Q1 2019's CA$5.7 million. Collectively, analysts tracking the stock were estimating the company would take in nearly CA$15.8 million in Q1.
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As for the bottom line, HEXO's net loss widened to CA$62.4 million for a per-share figure of CA$0.24. This was deeper than both the Q4 2019 deficit of CA$56.7 million and the year-ago shortfall of CA$12.8 million.
On a quarter-over-quarter basis, HEXO's net recreational cannabis revenue per gram equivalent slipped to CA$3.24 from Q4 2019's CA$3.51. The company implied that the drop would have been more pronounced had it not been for sales of its higher-end Up product line.
On a more positive note, HEXO pointed out that its operating expenses saw a 25% drop from the preceding quarter, falling to just over CA$35 million.
The company sounded optimistic for the remainder of the fiscal year. In the press release with the quarter's results, it wrote that "[c]ost control combined with our multibrand approach, an updated strain mix, as well as the introduction of new products, will help us increase our market share and total revenue, leading us toward great results in 2020."
But the company did not illustrate this optimism with specific guidance. It did say that it was aiming to improve revenue with new product launches, commission its Centre of Excellence facility in Ontario, and invest in research and development and intellectual property, among other objectives.
Like other Canadian cannabis companies, HEXO aims to take full advantage of the recently enacted Cannabis 2.0 initiative sanctioning the sale of cannabis derivatives such as gummies and extracts. In late October, the company was granted a license by the government to sell such products from its campus in Gatineau, Quebec.
