Colorado begins its second full week of fully legalized cannabis on a positive note. The Denver Police Department issued only four marijuana citations without any major incidents. According to Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson, "That's relatively small considering the number of people consuming right now." Interest in legal marijuana has been so high in the state that many shop owners have limited the amount consumers could buy or raised prices to avoid shortages.
Colorado is being closely watched by a number of other states considering recreational or medical marijuana legalization. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo took the first step towards legalizing cannabis in New York last week by announcing plans to let some hospitals distribute the drug to patients with "serious illnesses". Meanwhile, Alaskan activists secured enough signatures to put recreational cannabis legalization on the ballot during the upcoming election.
Investing in Cannabis
Cannabis traders had a roller coaster ride last week, with marijuana stocks surging higher early during the week followed by some profit-taking towards the end of the week. The biggest gainers included companies like Cannabis Sativa Inc. (OTCBB: CBDS) and Alternative Fuels Americas (OTCBB: AFAI), which both more than tripled last week. Companies like HEMP Inc. (OTCBB: HEMP) also moved higher last week but gave up some of their gains amid profit-taking by short-term traders.
Some of the week's top stories included:
- Alternative Fuels Americas (OTCBB: AFAI) announced on January 9, 2014 that it formed a subsidiary, Marijuana Holdings Americas, to mark its entry into the cannabis market. The subsidiary has begun evaluating the application process for medical marijuana and recreational licenses that are now available in 20 states and Washington D.C. with more states expected to follow suit.
- PeopleString Corp. (OTCBB: PLPE) announced that it received FINRA approval for a 1-for-40 stock split, name change, and symbol change to Vape Holdings Inc. (OTCBB: VAPE) on January 7, 2014. The entity will be focused on pursuing opportunities the legal cannabis concentrate industry.
- Advanced Cannabis Solutions (OTCBB: CANN) announced that it signed a long-term lease for its recently purchased Pueblo County gore property with a premier cannabis grow operation on January 10, 2014. The 8-year lease marks the first for the company that intends to become a leading cannabis land owner.
What to Watch this Week
Cannabis stocks will likely remain in play this week as traders continue to speculate in the space. While short-term trading has dominated the market so far in January, there are signs that long-term investors have stepped up interest in the space. Legalization in Colorado and soon-to-be Washington has opened up the market to significant opportunities.
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