Expansion plans at Emblem Corp. (TSXV:EMC) is more proof that the company is fulfilling its promise as one of the more interesting cannabis plays, says Echelon Wealth Partners analyst Russell Stanley.

This morning, Emblem Corp announced that it had agreed to purchase 80 acres of land in Ontario for $7.7-million. The company says it intends to build a 100,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility, with 60,000 square feet dedicated to production and the remainder earmarked for support services and administrative functions. Management says the facility will ultimately produce 20,000 kilograms of dried cannabis.

While Stanley says he thinks Emblem’s Q1, 2017 results, due today after market, won’t be particularly meaningful at this stage of its development, he does see today’s news as contributing to the company’s long-term progress.

“We continue to view EMC as an undervalued play on the growth of the cannabis market, with one of the strongest production growth profiles in the space, and a unique focus on developing additional business lines (pharmaceuticals and clinic operations),” says the analyst.

In a research update to clients today, Stanley maintained his “Speculative Buy” rating and one-year price target of $4.50 on Emblem Corp., impying a return of 94 per cent at the time of publication.

Stanley thinks Emblem will generate Adjusted EBITDA of negative $9.2-million on revenue of $4.8-million in fiscal 2017. He expects these numbers will improve to EBITDA of negative $4.1-million on a topline of $29.2-million the following year.