The fragmented, state-by-state nature of the marijuana industry historically has been dominated by small, local players, but larger, publicly traded companies with multistate operations are becoming an increasingly prevalent force.

300 mergers and acquisitions and a rash of reverse takeovers that allowed U.S. companies to go public in Canada, where marijuana is federally legal.

As of Jan. 9, the five publicly traded plant-touching multistate operators with the greatest market capitalization were Curaleaf, Green Thumb Industries, MedMen, Acreage Holdings and Trulieve.

A closer look at the individual footprints of these companies reveals some strategy behind state expansion choices.

These multistate operators (MSOs) tend to consider:

George Allen, president of Acreage Holdings, reinforced several of these points in a recent statement: “Continuing to expand our footprint is a core growth strategy for us, both in terms of expanding our presence in states that are considering transitioning to adult use, as well as those states considering a medical program for the first time.

“We want to be wherever there is demand and advocacy for safe, predictable and affordable cannabis.”

Here’s what else you need to know about these multistate operators:

Curaleaf (CSE: CURA) operates in 11 states including 42 dispensaries, 12 cultivation facilities and 10 processing facilities. Curaleaf’s Jan. 9 market capitalization was $2.6 billion.

Green Thumb Industries (CSE: GTII) operates in 11 states with 12 manufacturing licenses and 85 dispensaries. As of Jan. 9, GTI had a market cap of $1.8 billion.

MedMen (CSE: MMEN) is preparing to close its acquisition of PharmaCann this month, at which point the company will have a footprint of 12 states through 16 cultivation and processing facilities and 76 retail stores. MedMen had a market cap of $1.5 billion as of Jan. 9.

Acreage Holdings (CSE: ACRG.U) has the largest footprint of MSOs in the U.S., operating 15 cultivation facilities and 78 dispensaries in 19 states. Acreage had a market cap of $1.3 billion.

With the smallest state footprint of companies on this list, Trulieve (CSE: TRUL) is in only three states but operates 23 dispensaries in Florida alone. The company recently acquired operations in California and Massachusetts. As of Jan. 9, Trulieve had a market cap of $994 million.

Maggie Cowee can be reached at [email protected]