It’s reefer madness for Nanaimo-based Tilray Inc., which is now the most valuable cannabis company of its kind in the world.
The company’s shares have jumped by as much as 1,600 per cent since it began trading on the NASDAQ exchange in July.
WATCH: Marketing consultant Tony Chapman on the possibility of Coca-Cola getting into the cannabis-infused soft drinks business
Tilray went on a wild ride Wednesday, surging more than 90 per cent, then briefly dropping into negative territory and rebounding to close up roughly 38 per cent on the day at more than US$214. At its peak, the stock traded for close to US$300.
Tilray, along with Aurora Cannabis, spiked Monday after BNN Bloomberg reported that Coca-Cola is in serious talks with Aurora to develop cannabis-infused beverages. (Aurora has since denied these reports).
WATCH: Cashing in on cannabis, is it a ‘green bubble’?
The surge in stock price comes after the U.S.-based Drug Enforcement Agency approved it to ship marijuana to the U.S. for medical research.
The company and a researcher at the University of California San Diego believe this is the first export of a cannabis product from a Canadian company to the U.S., where marijuana is still illegal at the federal level.
The cannabis sector has proved to be volatile.
On Thursday, Tilray’s shares were down as much as 24 per cent.
WATCH: Cannabis industry concerns about crossing U.S. Border
— With files from Katie Dangerfield and The Canadian Press
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