This is a copy of the December 23rd edition of our weekly Newsletter, which we have been publishing since October 2015.

Friends,

As the year wraps up, one of the highlights has been the emergence of large multi-state operators (MSOs) that have been consolidating the American cannabis industry as they have gained access to capital, with several of them beginning to trade publicly. Most of them talk about a dual approach to growth, with mergers and acquisitions supplemented by organic growth opportunities through winning new licenses in relatively restricted markets. License wins, especially in states where the MSOs have operations already or in states where the programs are well established, are a relatively low-risk and inexpensive way for these companies to expand.

December has been a truly remarkable month for the MSOs. Earlier this month, Nevada issued additional adult-use licenses, roughly doubling the number. Essence, which is being acquired by Green Thumb Industries (GTI), picked up 8 of the 61 licenses. Green Growth Brands won 7, while MPX Bioceutical snagged 4. This week, New Jersey doubled its vertically integrated medical cannabis licenses, with MSOs picking up 5 of the 6 new licenses, including Columbia Care, GTI, MPX, TerrAscend (NETA) and Verano Holdings. Finally, Pennsylvania awarded 23 new dispensary licenses, with the majority going to MSOs, including 6, the maximum, for Harvest Health & Recreation, 4 for GTI, 2 for PharmaCann and 1 each for Cresco Labs and Vireo. GTI is on a roll, winning in all three states and also picking up licenses in West Hollywood (through Essence).

Several of these companies will be at the Benzinga Cannabis Capital Conference next month in Miami, in addition to many other leading companies from Canada and from the ancillary space, giving our readers a great opportunity to meet with them directly. The MSOs confirmed at this time for company presentations include Cannex Capital, which is merging with 4Front, Curaleaf Holdings, DionyMed Brands, Harvest Health & Recreation, iAnthus Capital, Liberty Health Sciences, Plus Products, Surterra and Trulieve. George Allen of Acreage Holdings, Steve White of Harvest, Hadley Ford of iAnthus, George Scorsis of Liberty and Kim Rivers of Trulieve will participate in a Town Hall Panel after lunch that Alan will be moderating. Additionally, Curaleaf CEO Joe Lusardi will be delivering one of the keynote addresses, while Cresco Labs CEO Charlie Bachtell will be participating in a Fireside Chat.

After the tremendous success of the first Cannabis Capital Conference in Toronto this summer, we are excited to be working with Benzinga again for its next event that is designed for North American cannabis investors and entrepreneurs, which will take place next month in sunny Miami Beach.

Get your ticket and be sure to use code “420ALAN”

New Cannabis Ventures publishes curated articles as well as exclusive news. Here is some of the most interesting business content from this week:

To get real-time updates download our free mobile app for Android or Apple devices, like our Facebook page, or follow Alan on Twitter. Share and discover industry news with like-minded people on the largest cannabis investor and entrepreneur group on LinkedIn.

Use the suite of professionally managed NCV Cannabis Stock Indices to monitor the performance of publicly-traded cannabis companies within the day or over longer time-frames. In addition to the comprehensive Global Cannabis Stock Index, we offer a family of indices to track Canadian licensed producers as well as the American Cannabis Operator Index.

View the Public Cannabis Company Revenue Tracker, which ranks the top revenue producing cannabis stocks that generate industry sales of more than $2.5m per quarter.

Discover upcoming new listings with the curated Cannabis Stock IPOs and New Issues Tracker.

Stay on top of upcoming cannabis investor earnings conference calls.

Consider subscribing to 420 Investor, Alan’s comprehensive stock due diligence platform since 2013 for more in-depth information and market intelligence about the publicly traded cannabis sector.

Find your place in the cannabis industry by visiting our Careers and Jobs Page and learn which companies are hiring aggressively.

Sincerely,

Alan & Joel

Exclusive article by Alan Brochstein, CFA Facebook | LinkedIn | Email Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as founder of online communities 420 Investor , the first and still largest due diligence platform focused on the publicly-traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. At New Cannabis Ventures , he is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before shifting his focus to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst following over two decades in research and portfolio management. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 at Seeking Alpha , where he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and a frequent source to the media, including the NY Times, the Wall Street Journal, Fox Business, and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan: Twitter