NEW A vastly improved search engine helps you find the latest on companies, business leaders, and news more easily.<doc-sep>The frenzy for pot stocks may expand in October as another Canadian company plans to be dual-listed. Aurora Cannabis said it is planning to list its shares on a major U.S. stock exchange next month. "Aurora is targeting the month of October to establish a U.S. listing," a company spokesperson said in an email to CNBC Thursday. The news was first reported by the Financial Post on Tuesday. Aurora's chief corporate officer Cam Battley told the media outlet a new listing will expand the potential investor base for the company to include U.S. institutional investors. Aurora is currently listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. A U.S. dual listing for Aurora would follow Canadian marijuana company Tilray's successful July IPO on the Nasdaq. On Wednesday, shares of Tilray rose 38 percent after CEO Brendan Kennedy told CNBC's that global pharmaceutical companies must think about partnering with cannabis producers as a "hedge" against the space. Tilray's stock is up more than 1,100 percent since its July IPO and nearly 500 percent over the past month through Wednesday. Earlier this week, shares of Aurora rose due to speculation about a major beverage company partnership even though the pot company said there's no agreement. — CNBC's Aditi Roy contributed to this report.<doc-sep>(Reuters) - Canada's Aurora Cannabis Inc ACB.TO said on Thursday it planned a U.S. listing of its shares in October, as it looks to cash in on strong investor appetite for marijuana producers. Interest has boomed in Canada’s marijuana companies ahead of legalization of recreational cannabis in the country next month. Several U.S. states have also legalized marijuana but it remains against federal law. Shares of rival Tilray Inc TLRY.O have surged more than 1,000 percent since their listing in July. The other U.S.-listed Canadian marijuana companies include Canopy Growth Corp WEED.TO and Cronos Group Inc CRON.TO. Marijuana producers are in demand as several companies, including Constellation Brands Inc STZ.N and Molson Coors Brewing Co TAP.N, are looking to tap cannabis-infused drinks market. Earlier this week, Coca-Cola Co KO.N said it was closely watching the fast-growing marijuana drinks market for a possible entry. Aurora’s shares were up 4.7 percent at C$11.38 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The company’s plan for a U.S. listing was first reported by the Financial Post on Wednesday.<doc-sep>Many institutions and individuals interested in marijuana investing have stayed on the sidelines because their investment options have been mostly limited to high-risk penny stocks that trade on unregulated over the counter markets. This pent-up demand, however, has begun to be unleashed. In May, Canopy Growth (NASDAQ:CGC) listed its shares on the New York Stock Exchange, and in July, Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY) held its initial public offering on the Nasdaq. Soon, those two companies may be joined on the major U.S. exchanges by Aurora Cannabis (NYSE:ACB), one of Canada's biggest marijuana companies. Is Aurora Cannabis worth buying now? First, a pot primer The United Nations pegs the global marijuana market at $150 billion annually, and increasingly, that market is being moved out of the shadows by laws establishing regulated marijuana marketplaces. Marijuana remains a Schedule I controlled substance in the United States, but that hasn't stopped individual states from passing pro-pot laws. So far, 31 states have passed laws supporting medical marijuana sales and nine states, including California -- the nation's most populous state -- have passed recreational marijuana laws. Despite the growing embrace of marijuana laws in the U.S., the country's cannabis market remains fragmented and hamstrung because of federal rules that create obstacles to doing business across state lines, deducting common business expenses on tax returns, and accessing traditional banking services. The challenges facing the U.S. marijuana industry have led many investors to focus on Canada, where a national medical marijuana market has been up and running since 2014. Canada's successful medical marijuana market has provided a blueprint for other countries to use, including Germany, and it's contributed to Canada's passing laws establishing a nationwide marketplace that's set to open next month. According to Deloitte, Canada's legal marijuana sales could total as much as $6.1 billion in 2019, with medical marijuana accounting for only between $770 million to $1.79 billion. Deloitte's forecast may only hint at the long-term market opportunity for marijuana, though. According to beer, wine, and spirits Goliath Constellation Brands (NYSE:STZ), Canada's marijuana market could be worth $11 billion and the global marijuana market could be worth over $200 billion in 15 years. Why list in the United States? According to Matt Karnes at GreenWave Advisors: The benefits of listing on a U.S. Exchange by a Canadian LP (or other marijuana company) is that it provides currency for acquisitions and alternatively, could facilitate investment into the listing company. Listing on a major U.S. exchange will also facilitate investment by institutions that would not otherwise be able to deploy capital into the sector. In short, listing on a major U.S. exchange unlocks pent-up demand from U.S. investors, driving share prices higher, and thus providing marijuana companies with an alternative to cash and debt for mergers and acquisitions. It also provides large equity owners of these marijuana companies the greatest opportunity possible to sell their shares at favorable prices. The benefits associated with listing in the U.S. are evidenced by Canopy Growth and Tilray's experiences. Since listing on the New York Stock Exchange in May, Canopy Growth's shares have more than doubled, and since IPO'ing on the Nasdaq at $17 in July, Tilray's shares are up over 600%. Canopy's increasing share price may have contributed to Constellation Brands willingness to pay $4 billion this summer to acquire a 38% ownership stake, meanwhile, Tilray's successful IPO has provided it with a cash stock pile that it's using to increase its production capacity ahead of Canada's recreational market opening in October. Since listing on the New York Stock Exchange, Canopy Growth has used shares to purchase Highlands for $29 million to enter the African market, successfully completed a $600 million Canadian dollars convertible senior notes offering that can be converted into shares at C$48.18, acquired the 33% it didn't own in BC Tweed for C$374 million in shares, made about C$100 million in Latin American acquisitions, used shares to acquire Canadian competitor Hiku, and used shares to acquire Canopy Health Innovations (a marijuana health company). I'm not saying these deals couldn't have happened otherwise, but the added liquidity and strength in shares following its U.S. listing likely didn't hurt. Aurora Cannabis: taking the leap One of Canada's biggest marijuana companies, Aurora Cannabis was an early player in Canada's medical cannabis market, and as a result, it's become one of Canada's leading marijuana producers. According to reports, it plans to follow in Canopy Growth and Tilray's footsteps and list itself in the U.S. on a major stock exchange as soon as October. Given the size of Aurora Cannabis' footprint and its financials, and Canopy Growth and Tilray's success, a good argument can be made that investors will flock to the stock once it begins trading in America. Aurora Cannabis has funded marijuana production capacity of over 500,000 kilograms per year and in its fiscal third quarter, revenue was C$16.1 million. Of that, cannabis product sales were $10.8 million, up 149% year over year because of organic growth and revenue from acquisitions, including CanniMed. For perspective, Canopy Growth's estimated 500,000 kilograms of production capacity translated into quarterly sales of C$25.9 million last quarter (up from $15.9 million the year prior), and Tilray's roughly 75,000 kilograms in capacity produced $9.7 million in sales last quarter, up from $5 million last year. Is Aurora Cannabis a buy? If Canopy Growth and Tilray's performances are any indication, demand for Aurora Cannabis shares following a U.S. listing could be significant. After all, it is one of the biggest marijuana companies, and, like Canopy Growth and Tilray, it's eyeing market share worldwide, not just in Canada. It's not a cheap stock, though. Its $8.8 billion market cap is lower than Canopy Growth and Tilray's, but it's still about 200 times annualized quarterly product sales. A valuation that rich likely bakes in a lot of growth. It may also bake in some of the value that could be associated with an equity deal like the one Constellation Brands inked with Canopy Growth this summer. As a refresher, Constellation Brands spent over $4 billion for 38% of Canopy Growth and it can pay an additional $3.4 billion to increase its stake above 50%.<doc-sep>
REUTERS/Nir Elias Aurora Cannabis is planning for a US initial public offering in October, the company's chief corporate officer said. The Canadian cannabis producer was reportedly in talks with Coca-Cola to make a CBD-infused drink. Marijuana stocks have been red-hot as of late. Watch Aurora Cannabis trade in real time here. Aurora Cannabis, the Canadian cannabis producer that was reportedly in talks with Coca-Cola to make a drink infused with CBD, one of the nonpsychoactive compounds found in cannabis, is targeting a US stock-market debut in October, a report says. "We're targeting the month of October to establish a US listing," Cam Battley, Aurora's chief corporate officer, told the Financial Post on Tuesday. An initial public offering on US markets has become more attractive in recent weeks as cannabis stocks have seen mouthwatering gains. It all started when Canopy Growth received a $4 billion investment from Constellation Brands, the beverage maker behind Corona beer and Svedka vodka, sending its stock up more than 22% in a single day. And rival Tilray has seen its stock surge more than 900% following its July IPO. It was recently boosted by word the company had received clearance to export medical marijuana to the United States for a clinical drug trial. But a listing won't come without some risk. A Politico report published last week said that workers of Canadian cannabis companies could face a lifetime travel ban to the US. "If you work for the industry, that is grounds for inadmissibility," Todd Owen, the executive assistant commissioner for the US Customs and Border Protection's Office of Field Operations, told Politico. Markets Insider NOW WATCH: Medical breakthroughs we will see in the next 50 years