US cannabis firm Greenlight issues first dividend to shareholders

By Arunima Kumar

(Reuters) – Cannabis company Greenlight said on Tuesday it has issued a dividend to its shareholders, calling the move a first by a large multi-state operator.

“We sent out 4% of our total invested capital in the company in the form of a dividend, which was a special dividend at this time,” John Mueller, Greenlight’s co-founder and chief executive officer, told Reuters.

The company did not provide specifics but said the total dividend amount was in “seven figures”, a majority of which was sent out last week while the remainder would be paid out in the next few days.

Greenlight said it does not have any corporate debt, allowing the cannabis brand to focus on expansion through acquisition.

“Our focus is more on strategic purchases looking at specific assets within companies,” Mueller said.

Mueller, however, added the average consumer cart size may slightly shrink amid the likelihood of a depression.

“A depression of wallet is bad for every industry. Average cart size may shrink slightly, but I think you will also see the product cost structures will get more in line as you see more cultivation and manufacturing getting on board,” he said.

The company has operations in Missouri, Arkansas, West Virginia, Illinois and South Dakota with over 36 cannabis dispensary licenses and more than 180,000 square feet of cultivation and manufacturing.

(Reporting by Arunima Kumar and Mrinalika Roy in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)