Stock Trading
Feb. 6, 202014 min read

8 Medical Marijuana Stocks to Keep an Eye on in 2019

stockstotradeAvatar
Written by stockstotrade

If you’re interested in being involved in what could potentially be one of the hottest sectors over the next couple of years, legalized marijuana, then this post is for you.

Big things are happening in the pot stock space, with more and more states and even entire countries legalizing the drug for both medical and recreational use, opening up the door for massive profits in the industry … and massive price moves in the related stocks.

Throughout 2018, the marijuana stock space has been wild, and with the steamroller effect of legalization and growing social acceptance, we’ll likely see the action continue into 2019.

Let’s examine why you should be looking at this space, and drill down on to some stocks to keep on your watchlist. Read on …

Download the key points of this post as PDF

Why You Should Pay Attention to Marijuana Stocks

If you’re an active trader looking to get involved with hot stocks, you want to focus on the hottest industries for the current market environment. Right now, that means pot stocks.

There’s almost always a hot industry that the market’s excited about. In previous years, we’ve seen wild action in shipping stocks, then it was A.I. stocks, then it was crypto … now it’s most definitely weed.

One of the most exciting parts of the cannabis industry is the rapid uptake of the drug by consumers. The demand for legal weed is very real and we could see some future Fortune 500 companies come out of the industry.

Another exciting fact is that while U.S. states are clearly legalizing the drug, the rest of the world is opening up as well. For example, Canada recently became the second country (after Uruguay) to legalize weed at a national level, and it’s likely more countries will follow in their footsteps soon.

The forecasted growth in spending for legal cannabis is a sight to behold. In 2018 we saw global spending for the drug surpass $9.5 billion and analysts forecast that it should exceed $32 billion.

These amazing growth projections are why we’re seeing traders and investors go crazy over pot stocks, and that’s exactly why you should keep a number of pot stocks on your watchlist.

Which Exchanges Are Pot Stocks Listed on?

There are thousands of pot stocks to trade. The bigger ones are often listed on major exchanges, but there are plenty of smaller companies that are traded OTC on the pink sheets.

It’s probably best to focus on pot stocks listed on major exchanges, due to the availability of liquidity and the likelihood you’ll be involved in legitimate companies due to SEC and stock exchange regulations.

With the uptake of legal marijuana happening all over the world, it’s a global industry and you’ll find pot stocks traded on exchanges in many countries.

In the U.S., the NYSE has a handful of pot stocks, but you’ll find many more weed companies listed on the Nasdaq. This is due to the Nasdaq generally being a better place to list high-growth and early-stage companies.

Globally, we also see pot stocks listed in places like Australia, Canada, Germany, the UK, Israel, and even Japan.

Even if you don’t focus on stocks traded outside the U.S., it’s a good idea to at least keep an eye on what the global weed stocks are doing as it could alert you to trade opportunities in the U.S. stocks.

The Difference Between Recreational and Medical Pot

Not all marijuana use is equal. The weed market is generally broken down into two sections: recreational use and medical use.

Recreational use can be thought of how we normally see the alcohol industry. It’s people using the drug for enjoyment and relaxation.

Companies involved in the recreational side could be involved in growing, developing or distributing various strains of marijuana or could be producing pipes, paraphernalia or devices to consume it.

There’s even ongoing development into the cannabis-infused drinks market, with a lot of buzz developing recently regarding Coca-Cola looking at opportunities in this space.

The medical-use industry, on the other hand, can be thought of in a similar way to how we view the pharmaceutical industry. Companies focused on this area could eventually grow into specialized pharmaceutical companies.

Medical marijuana is currently legal in the majority of U.S. states and requires a prescription from a doctor to obtain, no different from other prescription medicines.

There are all kinds of medical benefits touted for cannabis, such as in the treatment of depression, anxiety, diabetes, glaucoma and so much more. The industry is constantly having new discoveries on the medical benefits of weed.

From a business point of view, the exciting long-term prospect for the medical marijuana industry is if it’s eventually covered under health insurance. This could make it easy and affordable for those with a medical need to obtain pot in a similar way to other medicine.

That’s a brief rundown on the weed industry. Now do you get the idea of just how much potential there is for companies in this space?

Top Medical Marijuana Stocks to Watch

Have you caught the pot stock bug and you’re looking for stocks to add to your watchlist?

Here’s a list of eight medical pot stocks to keep an eye on over the coming year:

Stock #1: Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY)

Tilray is possibly the biggest name in the world of pot stocks today. They’re a Canadian pot grower and were the first pure marijuana IPO to list on the US exchanges.

Since listing on the Nasdaq, the stock price has skyrocketed due to the DEA giving the company approval to bring its product from Canada into the U.S.

The company also has plans to expand to many more global markets and is already exporting medical marijuana into Australia and New Zealand.

Stock #2 GW Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:GWPH)

GW Pharmaceuticals is a medical marijuana firm located in the UK. The company specializes in the development of cannabis-based medicines to treat things like multiple sclerosis, cancer, and epilepsy.

The company conducts advanced medical research and should be considered more in line with a pharmaceutical company than many of its weed industry cousins.

GW Pharmaceuticals is well known for producing Epidiolex, which is the first cannabis-based medicine to ever receive FDA approval.

Stock #3 Corbus Pharmaceuticals Holdings (NASDAQ:CRBP)

Corbus Pharmaceuticals are an American pharmaceutical company located in Massachusetts.

The company specializes in novel cannabinoid therapeutics to treat inflammatory and fibrotic diseases.

Unlike many of the other pot stocks, Corbus specializes in biotech research rather than sales and distribution.

Much of the company’s success rests on the success of its pipeline of drugs under development and the associated FDA approval.

Stock #4 Cara Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CARA)

Cara Therapeutics is a biotech company located in Stamford, CT. The company specializes in developing and commercializing cannabinoid medicine to treat and manage things like chronic pain and itching.

Cara has a number of drugs in late-stage development, such as it’s Korsuva injection which could be huge in improving the lives of people with kidney disease.

The company has established partnerships with various other marijuana firms to commercialize it’s medicines globally.

Stock #5 CannTrust Holdings (OTCMKTS:CNTTF)

CannTrust is a Canadian based producer of pesticide-free medical-grade marijuana. The company conducts medical research and trials in cooperation with McMaster University.

CannTrust currently sells to the Canadian market, but the company is establishing a greater distribution network, looking to expand to more markets globally.

Stock #6 Hexo Corporation (OTCMKTS:HYYDF)

Hexo Corp specializes in the design and production of medical marijuana products to treat various conditions and ailments.

Currently, the company focuses on the Quebec region of Canada, with a view to expanding to the rest of the country.

With its home base in Quebec, they’re well situated to start supplying the northeastern US states if legislation changes.

Stock #7 MariMed (OTCMKTS:MRMD)

MariMed mainly provides consulting for the legal weed industry. They focus on helping other pot companies to design, build and optimize better logistical and production systems.

The company could be a gateway to helping Canadian weed companies bring their product to the U.S. when legislation allows.

Stock #8 OrganiGram (OTCMKTS:OGRMF)

OrganiGram is a Canadian firm that produces medical marijuana products that focus on the treatment of things like PTSD and chronic pain.

The company has a number of partnerships with other weed companies, which could allow them to tap the European and American markets when the time is right.

4 Pot Stock Trading Tips

Successful trading is more than just knowing about a bunch of hot stocks — you also have to develop your skill set and set all your tools up properly.

Here are a few handy pointers to get you going in the right direction …

Don’t Chase Hot Stock Tips

Any time you have a hot stock sector, like how pot stocks are right now, you’ll start finding stock tips anywhere and everywhere. Beware!

Maybe you’ll find them on an online forum, or via Twitter, or through your cousin’s best friend or even your taxi driver. Everyone’s excited and they all seem to be experts … but really, they’re probably not experts at all.

Think about it. If a stock tip were so hot and so likely to be a massive winner, wouldn’t the smart traders have already bought every piece of stock they could get their hands on and bid the price up?

While stock tips may give you an idea for a winning trade, it’s important to first do your own research and make sure the trade fits your trading criteria. Anything else is just gambling.

Educate Yourself

The quickest way to lose money in the stock market is by jumping in without knowing what you’re doing.

That’s why it’s so important to strongly know how to trade before you ever risk a cent of your capital.

Thankfully, today, there are some very legitimate stock market educators that can allow you to look over their shoulder as they battle the markets.

If you’d like to come and learn from our lead trainer, Tim Bohen, check out StocksToTrade Pro, where you can interact with Tim while watching his trading screens every day.

Keep a Trading Journal

Trading is a journey with many ups and downs. If you’re smart, you’ll learn from both your wins and your mistakes.

A powerful way to keep track of everything you go through on your journey is by keeping a trading journal.

What you keep in a trading journal is up to you. You can log all your trades, your market observations, comments about how you felt that day, whether you were in a Zen mood, stressed or confused.

Over time you’ll collect results and likely see patterns on how your trading and market observations perform. Pay close attention to this!

Perhaps you’ll learn that certain setups work best in highly volatile markets making breakouts everywhere, and other setups perform best in range-bound markets that are just bouncing between major levels.

When you’ve collected and analyzed enough data, you can get a good idea of what works best for you and in which environments.

Then it’s just a question of doing more of what works and less of what doesn’t work. That’s how traders improve, no matter their experience level.

Use the Right Software

Keeping up to date with your favorite stocks can be a huge amount of work. You need to keep track of all the news, price action and announcements happening with every single one of your stocks.

Thankfully, with the right software, keeping on track of everything can be easier than you think.

That’s exactly what StocksToTrade does. What used to take hours out of each day and required access to 10+ websites can now all be found on one streamlined easy-to-use platform.

With StocksToTrade, you can access all the major U.S. equity markets, scan for hot stocks, use premium charting, keep up with SEC filings, create watchlists and so much more.

We created the StocksToTrade platform to be exactly what we needed to streamline our day as traders. So if you’re into pot stock trading — or any kind of stock trading, for that matter — check out a StocksToTrade 7-day, $7 trial and see how it helps your routine.

Ready to Get Serious?

By now, you might be excited to get involved in trading medical pot stocks. You probably even have a few names to add to your watchlist.

But remember, there’s a lot more that goes into profitable trading than just holding some stocks in a hot sector. You have to know what you’re doing.

StocksToTrade Pro is a community of serious traders, all striving to become trained stock market killers.

Joining the STT Pro community gives you access to Tim Bohen’s daily market webinars, where he shows you exactly what he looks at before the market opens each day.

You’ll see the exact stocks he’s looking to trade, and look over his shoulder as he builds his watchlists and maps out the trading day ahead.

You can view his trading screen as he streams the entire trading session, showing you exactly when he buys and sells any particular stock.

You’ll also have access to the exclusive STT Pro trader chatroom, where super-driven traders meet and share the ups and downs of their daily trading journeys. With STT Pro, you don’t have to feel alone in the market.