The marijuana industry includes companies directly related to the research, development, and distribution of cannabis products, as well as companies that indirectly support these operations. Traditional stock market indices like the Nasdaq have begun to include more companies from the marijuana industry as a growing number of U.S. states and countries around the world legalize marijuana in one or more forms. Now, companies like Aphria Inc. (APHA) and OrganiGram Holdings Inc. (OGI) are being traded on the Nasdaq and other U.S. exchanges rather than the over-the-counter market.﻿﻿ ﻿﻿ Many companies in this young industry are losing money as they invest heavily to focus on rapidly expanding revenue. Many of these companies have still experienced revenue growth in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Marijuana stocks, as represented by the ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF (MJ), have dramatically underperformed the broader market, with a total return of -47.2% compared to the S&P 500's total return of 23.9% over the past 12 months.﻿﻿ These market performance numbers and the statistics in the tables below are as of August 26.

Here are the top 3 marijuana stocks on the Nasdaq with the best value, the fastest sales growth, and the best performance.

Best Value Marijuana Stocks on the NASDAQ

These are the marijuana stocks on the Nasdaq with the lowest 12-month trailing price-to-sales (P/S) ratio. For young companies that have not reached profitability, this can provide an idea of how much business you’re getting for each dollar invested.