Hip-hop star Snoop Dogg.
Canopy Growth Corp. jumped to a record high, and other Canadian cannabis growers gained, after unveiling a line of marijuana products for the domestic market in a partnership with rapper Snoop Dogg.
The Smiths Falls, Ontario-based company soared as much as 17 per cent and was up 9.2 per cent to $5.44 at 11:12 a.m. in Toronto trading. The shares have climbed 84 per cent this year, heading for a third straight annual gain.
Tweed Inc., a subsidiary of Canopy, will begin selling three varieties of cannabis under the "Leafs by Snoop" brand in Canada in October, the company said in a statement. The two first announced they would work together in February, and have been developing product lines since. Snoop Dogg also markets marijuana products in Colorado under the same label.
Smaller marijuana producers also rallied on the news, with Vancouver-based Aurora Cannabis Inc. up 22 per cent to a record. The stock has jumped 58 per cent during a four-day rally. Leamington, Ontario's Aphria Inc. is also trading at a high.
"Snoop is much more than an artist, entertainer and entrepreneur," Mark Zekulin, president of Tweed, said in the release. "He's also one of the most trusted voices in cannabis the world over. We're welcoming a cannabis culture icon into the Canadian industry."
Canopy became the first marijuana producer to trade on a major North American stock exchange when it graduated to the Toronto Stock Exchange in July. Canopy CEO Bruce Linton has ambitious expansion plans for the company as it grows internationally and Canada inches closer to full legalization of the drug that's now allowed for medical use.
The government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who campaigned on a legalization pledge, is due to receive a report in November recommending how Canada may move forward. Marijuana has become a booming industry in North America as U.S. states including Colorado and Washington have made use of the drug legal.
"What started for me in the 90s in Cali now has a home in places like Colorado, where real progress is being made," Snoop Dogg said in the statement.
Jason Zandberg, an analyst at PI Financial, said in a note late Wednesday the expected report and U.S. marijuana initiatives could be significant catalysts for Canopy in the next few quarters, with the potential to "light the stock up." Mr. Zandberg has a buy rating for Canopy and a $5 price target.