Weed Stocks: Tilray going bananas after CEO appears on Cramer’s Mad Money

CNBC/Mad Money

• Tilray CEO Brenden Kennedy appeared on CNBC’s “Mad Money” Tuesday evening.
• He told Cramer alcohol and drug companies should be looking at the cannabis space and that Canada is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to full legalization of the drug. 
• Tilray shares are up 41.55% ahead of Wednesday’s opening bell.
• Watch Tilray trade in real time here.

The Canadian cannabis producer Tilray is soaring ahead of Wednesday’s opening bell after CEO Brenden Kennedy laid out his company’s growth prospects on CNBC’s “Mad Money.”

Shares are up 41.55% early Wednesday after Kennedy told Jim Cramer that Canada is just the tip of the iceberg for full legalization when it comes to marijuana. 

“I think you’ll see the third country within 12 months of October, and that’s where the real opportunity is,” he said. “It’s not about Canada, it’s about all the countries that follow.”

Big shares gains like the one seen on Wednesday have been somewhat of a common occurrence for cannabis producers. 

For instance, on Tuesday, Tilray shares surged 28.95% on word the company is set to be the first to export legal weed to the US for use in a clinical trial at the University of California at San Diego.

And on Monday, Aurora Cannabis soared more than 15% following a Bloomberg report suggesting the cannabis producer was in talks with Coca-Cola to develop beverages infused with CBD.

The frenzy around the marijuana space started in the middle of August, when Canopy Growth received a $4 billion investment from Constellation Brands, the beverage company behind Corona and Svedka vodka. 

And Kennedy believes the entire alcohol industry needs to get involved in the marijuana space. “It’s a great hedge for them,” Kennedy told Cramer. “Whether you’re an alcohol or an investor in an alcohol company, this is a global opportunity.” 

But that’s not all. He also says pharmaceutical companies need to get in the game, noting that Tilray has already formed a strategic alliance with Novartis. 

“Cannabis is a substitute for prescription painkillers, prescription opioids, and so if you’re an investor in a pharmaceutical company or you’re a pharmaceutical company, you have to hedge the offset from cannabis substitution,” he said. 

Tilray shares have gained more than 800% through Tuesday since their initial public offering in mid July. 

Markets Insider