Profitable cannabis companies with a robust business model are few and far between in an overcrowded pot stock landscape where production output reigns supreme. Low margins on dried cannabis combined with a hyper-competitive marketplace lead to a fair lack of diversity and fluctuating revenues among the marijuana sector.

Cannabis oils, though significantly more expensive to the consumer tend to generate higher revenues at better margins. Companies with a focus on oils and extracts lead to better returns for shareholders as well. Here are four marijuana stocks that know how to turn a profit, and why you should invest in them now:

Quadron Cannatech Corporation

Vancouver-based Quadron Cannatech Corporation (CSE:QCC) (OTC:QUDCF) is an automated extraction and processing solutions company occupying the ancillary cannabis space. The company provides equipment, products, and services to marijuana businesses throughout the North American continent through their subsidiaries Soma Labs Scientific, Greenmantle and Cybernetic Control Systems.

Not content with merely owning the extraction space, Quadron hopes to disrupt the industry with their high flow CO2 system called The Boss. The project offers a unique new process that cuts extraction times in half, including setup and aftercare - a small advantage with significant potential in an overcrowded sector.

A diversified play for investors, Quadron recently announced increased sales of their new custom cartridges and vape pen consumption devices. They did consider becoming a Licensed Producer in Canada, but ultimately decided the risk was too much. Their goal is the cannabis oil market. With vape pens accounting for 61 percent of sales in California, Quadron is a smart play for pot stock investors looking above the weeds.

CannaRoyalty Corporation

Owning a broad portfolio of investments, CannaRoyalty Corporation (CSE:CRZ) (OTC:CNNRF) has a number of extraction assets focused on the California market. “We believe very strongly that California is and will continue to be the most important cannabis market in the world,” CEO Marc Lustig recently said.

Their recent acquisition of Bhang Vape, one of the leading vape cartridge manufacturers in California, firmly grounds the company’s extraction opportunities in the most significant adult-use marijuana market open to investors today. In fact, the company now holds a total of nine different assets in the state.

Furthermore, CannaRoyalty’s stake in vape pen and cartridge producer MüV earns them a healthy slice of royalties. Over a year and a half ago the company invested in Resolve Digital, a medical vaporization device company which Lustig says has returned shareholders eight times its value prior to the initial investment.

CannaRoyalty also holds stakes in AbsoluteXtracts and Rich Extracts and is developing The Terpistry, all of which adds up to, to paraphrase Lustig, a very nice chess board of cannabis extracts assets.

MedReleaf Corporation

One of the most formidable pot stocks in the weed economy today, MedReleaf Corporation (NASDAQOTH:MEDFF) impresses on numbers alone. With an almost $15 per share market price and a market cap just over $1.5 billion, a solid foundation lies under this quiet cannabis juggernaut.

The company holds a significant share of the Canadian oils market; as much as 44.5 percent as recently as 2016. And though the market has clearly grown since then, MedReleaf has too. In fact, according to one report, their extracts are responsible for an overall increase in sales, despite a decline in dried cannabis revenues.

A recently announced $100 million bought-deal offering will allow the company an opportunity to expand even further, with plans for additional cannabis production and manufacturing facilities in Canada and other legal cannabis markets. Solid financials and a firm grip on the extraction space make MedReleaf a solid play for pot stock investors looking for long-term growth.

Canopy Growth Corporation

Canadian cannabis giant Canopy Growth Corporation (TSX:WEED) surprisingly earns a significant amount of revenue from the extraction market, with cannabis oils accounting for a solid 23 percent of the company’s total revenue in the third quarter of this year alone. The number is growing too, as oils only accounted for 13 percent of sales in the same period last year.

Canopy may be no longer be a bargain at $31 per share, especially if those investors afraid if missing out feel they already have, but the company is a known entity among pot stocks. When the industry shakes out in a few years only a few major firms will be left standing; with strong backing from beverage-maker Constellation brands, it is a safe bet to assume Canopy may be crowned king in the end.

At the point, $31 per share will feel like a steal.

*Editor's note: This article mistakenly listed Quadron Cannatech as applying to be a Licensed Producer in Canada. The company looked into it, but ultimately decided against it because there was too much risk involved.