DEAD MAN WALKINGFrom today's Globe and Mail:
Globe says future of Canopy Growth in doubt 04:51
The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday, June 27, edition that Canopy Growth posted a larger-than-expected net loss in its latest quarterly results last week amid declining revenue and "material misstatements" from its BioSteel sports drink division. The Globe's James Berkow writes that aggressive cost cutting and the dismissal of hundreds of employees have thus far failed to bolster Canopy's bottom line, pushing the company's shares to all-time lows. Canopy also revealed in a regulatory filing that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has launched an investigation after the company identified "material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting." Despite all those challenges, the largest albatross around Canopy's neck is its debt. Management has "raised substantial doubt as to the company's ability to continue as a going concern due to certain material debt obligations coming due in the short term," it disclosed last week. CIBC analyst John Zamparo covers Canopy stock with the equivalent of a sell rating and share target of 45 cents. According to Mr. Zamparo, Canopy, as of June 30, will have $600-million in cash and cash-equivalents, and a total debt of about $1.2-billion.