Ascend Wellness Revenue Increases Sequentially Capitalizing On Adult Use Cannabis Sales In New Jersey

Ascend Wellness Holdings, Inc. AAWH AAWH released its financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2022, revealing gross revenue increased 16.2% quarter-over-quarter and increased 20.7% year-over-year, to $117.7 million.

Q2 2022 Financial Highlights

• Net revenue, which excludes intercompany sale of wholesale products, increased 17.0% year-over-year, to $97.5 million. Net revenue increased 14.6% quarter-over-quarter, primarily driven by the start of adult-use sales in New Jersey and increases in wholesale volumes and realized pricing in New Jersey and Michigan.

• Net loss decreased to $21.2 million during the quarter, compared to a net loss of $27.8 million in Q1 2022.

• Adjusted EBITDA was $20.9 million, representing a 21.4% margin, a ~220 basis point margin expansion quarter-over-quarter.

• As of June 30, 2022, cash and cash equivalents were $140.6 million, and net debt was $152.7 million.

Business Highlights

• The company started adult-use sales at its Rochelle Park, New Jersey dispensary on April 21^st, with store sales reaching as high as $1.25 million in a single week. Subsequent to quarter end, the company opened its Fort Lee, New Jersey dispensary for medical sales. The company expects to begin selling adult-use cannabis at its Montclair, New Jersey store on August 19th, pending approval by the township, followed by adult-use sales in Fort Lee this fall.

• In Q2 2022, AWH opened its East Lansing, Michigan dispensary, which, combined with Fort Lee, New Jersey brings the company's current total to 22 operating dispensaries.

• The company began construction at its cultivation facility in Smithfield, Pennsylvania. During the remainder of the year, AWH will build out the facility and begin constructing its six planned dispensaries in Pennsylvania.

• AWH closed on $65 million of the remaining funding available under the accordion feature of its existing senior secured term loan, bringing the total debt financing from the loan to $275 million. This capital will support the company's growth and expansion initiatives in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and other states.

• Subsequent to quarter end, the company announced that it entered into a definitive agreement providing AWH the option to acquire 100% of the equity of Ohio Patient Access ("OPA"), which owns and operates three Ohio dispensaries that are in the process of being built in Cincinnati, Piqua, and Sandusky. The addition of OPA's three dispensaries will increase AWH's Ohio footprint to five dispensaries, the maximum permitted by the state. The company also signed two agreements to acquire two dispensary licenses in Illinois from separate sellers. Once closed, the company would have ten dispensaries in Illinois, which would maximize scale and bring the company to the state-imposed cap of ten.

"We are pleased with our financial performance for the quarter, with upwards of 15% revenue growth and operating leverage which drove a 220 basis point increase in adjusted EBITDA margins," stated Abner Kurtin CEO and co-founder. "The key driver of these results was the commencement of adult-use sales at our Rochelle Park, New Jersey dispensary, one of the top performing stores in the state. Ascend is extremely well positioned to benefit from adult-use sales in New Jersey, because of our attractive collection of assets combined with high operating leverage given our focused portfolio. Outside of New Jersey, the rest of the business across the portfolio also exceeded expectations. Furthermore, we were pleased to announce important acquisitions in Ohio and Illinois, which bring us to the retail cap in both states, positioning us to be a leader in the Midwest. This growth is supported by one of the top balance sheets in the industry with $141 million of cash and no near term maturities."

Photo by Shelby Ireland on Unsplash

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