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Canadian cannabis giant Canopy Growth is close to a deal to purchase Acreage Holdings, representing the latest in a string of deals in one of the globe’s fastest-growing industries.
The two companies have been in talks for about two weeks and were scheduled to speak on the phone Wednesday evening to finalize the agreement, sources familiar with the matter tell CNBC’s Melissa Lee. Sources also told CNBC that Canopy had been looking at deals with other U.S.-based operators in addition to Acreage.
Shares of Canopy rallied more than 10% in after hours trading Wednesday following the news. Neither Acreage Holdings nor Canopy Growth immediately returned CNBC’s calls requesting comment.
Acreage Holdings, one of the largest vertically integrated, multistate cannabis operators in the U.S., has attracted attention on Wall Street in part thanks to former U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, who serves as a director at the company.
For its part, Canopy Growth remains one of the largest players in the burgeoning cannabis industry. With a market cap of about $14 billion, Canopy has drawn attention for its partnership with Corona beer maker Constellation Brands. It’s also announced plans to locate a hemp operations in New York State with the help of a recent acquisition of cannabis research company, Ebbu.
In its most recent earnings report, Canopy said it sold 10,102 kilograms of pot and equivalents in the three months ended December 2018. It’s also introduced new products such as oral cannabis sprays and pre-rolled joints made by its custom-built, proprietary automated cannabis rolling machines.
As of September, Canopy had 4.3 million square feet of licensed capacity in Canada, which it is expanding to 5.6 million. That represents about 35% of industry capacity, according to industry analysts.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.
