Shares of Aurora Cannabis (NYSE :), (TSX 🙂 🙂 fell by around 10% on Monday and reached its lowest point in more than two years after the news that his chief corporate officer Cam Battley had left the company abruptly, according to an announcement Saturday.
Battley, who was a prominent spokesperson for Aurora, joined the company in 2016 and was named CCO in 2018. He leaves to take up a position on the board of MedReleaf, based in Australia. He was appointed to the board of the private medical cannabis grower in November, a move recently approved by the Australian Federal Anti-Drug Office. Aurora has a 10% interest in MedReleaf Australia and 50% of the voting rights.
"Cam has been an integral part of the development, growth and expansion of Aurora," said Aurora CEO Terry Booth. “We are grateful for Cam's leadership and passion during his many years with Aurora. I'm sure Cam will be successful if he continues to tackle Australia. "
Aurora weekly price chart
The announcement comes as the Edmonton-based Aurora struggles with figures that did not meet expectations and even the company's own guidance, which put the cash reserves in the spotlight.
An addition to the company's problems is the recent announcement that it is stopping operations in two large greenhouses to reduce costs. The affected installations include one in Alberta and one in Denmark. The Alberta plant on the outskirts of Medicine Hat was described by square meters as the largest greenhouse in the world. The move was considered necessary to keep costs under control, despite a reported fall in turnover of 25%.
The shares of the company lost more than 55% in 2019.
Even small sellers hit harder times
While some investors gambled and lost on marijuana shares in 2019, short sellers bet against it – and won.
Short sellers have made a profit of US $ 993 million (C $ 1.3 billion) so far, according to figures from analysis firm S3 Partners.
The greatest short-term gain came for those who bet against Aurora Cannabis, Cronos Group (NASDAQ :), (TSX 🙂 and Tilray (NASDAQ :).
But according to the report, the last month was difficult, even for short sellers. Data from the S3 Partners shows that these investors have lost US $ 132 million (C $ 174 million) this month. One of the biggest losers on the short side for December are Canopy Growth (NYSE :), (TSX :), GW Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ :), Aphria (NYSE :), (TSX 🙂 and Cronos Group.
"Short exposure in the cannabis sector is $ 843 million (C $ 1.1 billion) + 35% higher in 2019," the report said. “Short selling is fairly concentrated on a handful of names, with only six shares with a top value of $ 100 million (C $ 132 million). The top 20 shorts represent almost 84% of the total shorting performed in the sector with a total short-term interest rate of $ 3.3 billion (C $ 4.3 billion) … "
