Florida Medical Cannabis Patient Growth Is Slowing – New Cannabis Ventures

Each week, Florida’s Office of Medical Marijuana Use (OMMU), which is part of the state’s Department of Health, releases data on the program, including an active patient count, a qualified physician count, new approvals and an update for each dispensary. That data includes the number of dispensaries and the weight of sales each week. This is the second New Cannabis Ventures article in what we expect will provide updates every month. This article is based upon the update that was provided Friday as of 5/02. Readers who are interested in the  data going forward can visit the OMMU update page.

Patient Growth Is Slowing

In the article three weeks ago, we discussed that the patient growth was slowing, and it has continued to slow. In the week ended 5/2, it grew at a record-low rate of  7.8% annually, down from the 8.4% growth for the year ending 4/11. There are 880K patients, which is almost 4% of the state’s population.

Unit Growth Remains Strong

In that first article, we pointed to the unit growth being stronger than the patient growth. This past week, Florida dispensaries sold 336.7 million mgs of THC, up 14.0% from a year earlier. They also sold 108,628 ounces of smokable flower, up 7.3% from a year earlier. Both of these were slower growth than three weeks ago, and the THC product growth is faster than the patient growth. We continue to view this as a sign that pricing pressure in the state is strong.

Conclusion

Florida’s medical cannabis market has seen very strong growth in the number of patients and the number of stores, but, as we have reported, the revenue growth has been slowing. In February, it was a record low 5.8% as we reported. We will be providing a March update soon. The medical market looks to be very mature, and hopefully the voters in the state will approve adult-use legalization in the November elections.

Published by Alan Brochstein, CFA

Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as founder of online community 420 Investor, the first and still largest due diligence platform focused on the publicly-traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. At New Cannabis Ventures, he is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before shifting his focus to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst following over two decades in research and portfolio management. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 at Seeking Alpha, where he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and a frequent source to the media, including the NY Times, the Wall Street Journal, Fox Business, and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email