Why Is Clever Leaves Stock Surging 140%? Look To Washington DC Next Week For The Answer

Stocks of Clever Leaves Holdings Inc. CLVRW are soaring as of late Friday following reports indicating the U.S. House Rules Committee has scheduled a Monday afternoon meeting to prepare the MORE Act, a federal marijuana legalization bill, for floor action. Clever Leaves is a leading multinational operator and licensed producer of pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoids.

Shares of several other cannabis firms, including Aurora Cannabis Inc ACB, Canopy Growth Corp CGC, Cronos Group Inc CRON, Sundial Growers Inc SNDL, and Tilray Inc TLRY, are all trending higher

Clever reported its financial and operating results late Thursday for the fourth quarter and full-year ended December 31, 2021. The firm increased its revenues in 2021 by 27% accumulating $15.4 million compared to $12.1 million in 2020.

Clever's stock closed up 143% at $3.84 a share.

“Yesterday’s call brought not just impressive overall earnings figures but also the reaffirmation of Clever Leaves’ 2022 outlook. The quarter saw revenue hit $4.2 million, a gain of roughly 25%. Revenue from cannabinoids rose 11% to $1.1M, while for the non-cannabinoid category it spiked by 31% and reached $3.1 million. Revenues were driven by increased distributor demand and expanding sales activity,” reported investorplace.com

The Potential Impact Of Passing The More Act

The Marijuana Justice Coalition (MJC), a broad coalition of national advocacy organizations convened by the Drug Policy Alliance, including the American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch, sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) earlier this month, calling for a floor vote on the bill.

The MORE Act repeals the long-standing federal prohibition of marijuana by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act, that way ending the state/federal conflict over cannabis policies and providing state governments with greater authority to regulate marijuana-related activities, including retail sales.

“The MORE Act de-schedules cannabis and provides money for communities that were impacted by the War on Drugs, it is similar to the CAO Act, but we expect the CAO to go further and establish federal agencies’ jurisdictions because cannabis has different properties medical, therapeutic… and that speaks to the role of FDA, which controls anything having to do with medicine in the country,” said Steven Hawkins, president, and CEO of the US Cannabis Council, in an exclusive interview with Benzinga. “If MORE passes the cannabis sector is free to engage in business as usual.”

Image By Ilona Szentivanyi.