Aphria has 'significant future capacity potential' but is still in ramp-up mode: CIBC

Ciara Linnane - finance.yahoo.com Posted 5 years ago

CIBC analysts raised their stock price target on Aphria Inc. to $12 from $10 on Tuesday and said its fiscal third-quarter earnings showed a company with "significant future capacity potential," but that it is still in ramp-up mode. "We continue to believe Aphria's cultivation and automation skills provide a solid competitive advantage, and the company's 10% market share in the recent quarter (our estimate) is notable, but at this stage, we gravitate towards other names in the sector with stronger balance sheets and more defined strategies for the medium term," analysts John Zamparo and Krishna Ruthnum wrote in a note to clients. CIBC rates the stock as neutral. Cannabis revenue of C$16 million were way below their estimate of C$28 million, said the note, and a 20% decline in adult-use pricing incurred to invest in one particular brand "warrants some questioning." The analyst also raised concerns about the Nuuvera acquisition, which has a book value of more than C$500 million and will be reviewed after year-end. "We have no idea whether this asset will be considered impaired, and applaud Aphria for last week's announcement that it has won a license to cultivate cannabis in Germany (200kg/yr for the moment), but do wonder if the possibility of further asset write-downs exists in the future, which could act as a drag on the stock." Aphria shares were up 1.4% in premarket trade, but have fallen 11.3% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 8.5%.

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