Canada’s legalized pot empire could be going up in smoke after one of its oldest and largest publicly traded companies took a hit on its US stock listing..Edmonton-based Aurora Cannabis Inc. (ASB:NASDAQ) received notice that its shares no longer meet NASDAQ Listing Rule 5450(a)(1) as the bid price of the company's listed securities had closed at less than $1.00 US per share over the last 30 consecutive business days from Feb, 8 to March 23, 2023..On Tuesday they were trading at about 68 cents in the US. In a statement, the company said the notice doesn’t affect its Toronto Stock Exchange listing where they were trading at 69 cents Canadian. That’s down from a 52-week high of $4.54..In other words, it just isn’t generating a lot of buzz..The company has 30 days to push its shares back above a buck for a minimum of ten consecutive trading days or face further action, including delisting. .“The company intends to continue actively monitoring the bid price for its shares between now and the expiration of the Compliance Period and will consider all available options to resolve the deficiency with every intention to regain compliance with the Minimum Bid price requirement,” it said in a release..That could include consolidation or sale of the company. Like any other public company in its situation, on March 17 it filed a short form prospectus with securities regulators to sell $650 million worth of new shares, including $412 million to pay outstanding warrants..Aurora, which was worth well over a billion dollars a year ago has a current market capitalization of about $320 million. It has several recreational and medical brands to its credit and is presently awaiting full legalization in the US and Germany..Despite its troubles, Forbes magazine stilll lists it as a top pick in the cannabis sector due to its market share on this side of the border and prospects for wider legalization. .“Aurora management has said the company should finally be profitable on an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) basis as it exits the December quarter..In the same report, Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Pablo Zuanic said Aurora’s leading medical franchise extends beyond Canada to Germany and other nascent international markets. Zuanic is particularly bullish about Germany, which he expects to continue to grow its medical market on its path to recreational marijuana legalization..Cantor has an “overweight” rating and $3 price target for the stock.
