Justin Meiklem, V.P. of Stockhouse
It is late June, and Stockhouse traffic is trending up, suggesting that this will be the 2nd consecutive summer that bucks the usual seasonality trend. Last year we saw a strong summer turn into a record-breaking Q4 -- here are the hottest stocks on site over the past 60 days.
Top 3 Companies per Sector
- Cannabis – Aurora Cannabis Inc, Isodiol International Inc., Canopy Growth Corp
- Energy – Baytex Energy Corp, Crescent Point Energy Corp, Enbridge Inc.
- Industrials – Bombardier Inc., Radient Technologies Inc, Mission Ready Services Inc.
- Metals + Mining – Novo Resources Corp, Nemaska Lithium Inc., Katanga Mining Ltd
- Technology – Reliq Health Technologies Inc, UrtheCast Corp., Patriot One technologies Inc.
- Blockchain – HIVE Blockchain Technolgoies Ltd., St Georges Eco Mining Corp., BTL Group Ltd.
- Healthcare – ProMetic Life Sciences Inc., Antibe Therapeutics Inc, Theralase Technologies Inc.
Looking at site metrics (on quote lookups, content reads, and bullboard activity) here are 3 trends:
1. Cannabis interest is building – AGAIN. This sector is maturing in waves, and there is another one on its way. At this point in 2017, only 17 of the Top 100 most researched companies on Stockhouse.com were Cannabis related. For May/June of 2018, that number is now 34 of the Top 100. That number indicates that even though the 800 lb gorillas like Aurora and Canopy Growth are garnering intense interest and continue to expand their shareholder bases, many new and smaller issuers are capturing what is proving to be very broad investor interest. Consider this – Aurora Cannabis views on site increased 9% year over year, as compared to an overall page view gain in the sector of 25%. Isodiol is an example of a new company company holding its own against the unicorns, and is currently in the Top 3 of all pubcos on Stockhouse.com.
2. We all just got a little younger – at least the average investor on Stockhouse.com did. Traditionally, our average site user is 45+ years old, but that has changed in the past year, largely driven by Cannabis and crypto currency. Entering 2018, our single largest demographic group on site was 25-34, which disproves every “Millennials won’t invest in the stock market “ complaint. They have been attracted to the promise of new opportunity, volatility, and products that they identify with – investor relations firms across every sector should be looking at this recipe, as this investor group has now experienced its first taste of equity investing, and a lot of success.
3. What’s next? Looking at those same charts, Energy is the only established sector to gain more spots, with 10 Energy stocks now in the Top 100. Comparing this year and last, there is growing momentum in oil & gas, with a steady increase in investor interest. At the other end of the spectrum , it is clear that technology investors are less active than in Q2 last year, which predated the late 2017 Crypto/Blockchain rush. Mining is holding its own, representing 25 of the Top 100 spots.
These data points are only looking at the Top 100 symbols on site, so they aren’t representative of the entire small cap market, but they do show what is hottest right now. News flow is the top driver of investor interest for small cap companies, and the current combination of new issuers, consolidation and partnerships, and Canadian legalization are creating the next wave in the new Cannabis space.
Looking forward - we are seeing market conditions combining a once-in-a-generation influx of new investors and new money with the Cannabis sector mobilizing for a “now official” October 17 legalization date. On the mining side, 2018 has been a solid period for resource company financings, and many are now cashed up for summer drilling programs and potential great results - this is not a summer where investors can afford to “sell in May and go away”. To all investors – don’t go anywhere!
FULL DISCLOSURE: Isodiol International Inc., Friday Night Inc., Newstrike Resources Ltd., and Theralase Technologies Inc. are paid clients of Stockhouse Publishing.