Yahoo Finance After Hours: Marijuana Stock ETF to Start Trading, Chipotle Cruises to a New High
In contrast to a memorable Monday for stocks, tonight's after-market action is relatively subdued. There haven't been too many earth-shaking news items rattling share prices; for the most part, traders seem to be taking the night off.
Tomorrow might be a different story, since there's a new security on the marijuana stock block. Also, a certain fast-casual Mexican food joint is bucking the overall stock market trend, even after market close.
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The Canabis ETF arrives
A new marijuana stock, in the form of an exchange-traded fund (ETF), is slated to hit the market. The Cannabis ETF, a rather bluntly named security from an ETF sponsor company called Innovation Shares, will become available for trading on the New York Stock Exchange's Arca market starting tomorrow. The ticker symbol will be THCX.
In a press release issued after market close tonight, Innovation Shares said The Cannabis ETF is to be "the first passively managed pure-play ETF solution for investing." The securities that comprise this marijuana stock ETF will mirror the 36 listed on the company's Innovation Labs Cannabis Index. The Cannabis ETF will charge a management fee of 0.7%, which isn't exactly cheap, but not out of line for a specialty ETF.
Stocks within the ETF at launch will include the famous names in the sector and companies associated with it, such as Canopy Growth (NYSE: CGC), Aurora Cannabis (NYSE: ACB), and Scotts Miracle-Gro.
It seems the top five stocks in the ETF are to be Canopy Growth, Aurora Cannabis, Tilray, Cronos Group, and GW Pharmaceuticals.
Although The Cannabis ETF is hardly the first marijuana stock ETF on the market, it should give a boost to the overall legitimacy of the sector. Due to its narrow focus, it will be small compared to more traditional ETFs traded on the exchange, so we probably shouldn't expect too much of a positive knock-on effect for the likes of Canopy Growth and its ilk.
Speaking of which, Canopy Growth is down slightly in after-hours trading, while Aurora Cannabis is trading up marginally. The other mentioned stocks are all floating either slightly higher or lower than their closing market prices today.
Chipotle stock price sets a 3-year record
The demise of the fast-casual restaurant sector has been greatly exaggerated. The bellwether stock in that asset class, burrito and quesadilla slinger Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG), is notching new multiyear highs as we speak.
Chipotle's stock closed today at nearly $750 per share, a level it hasn't hit since late 2015. In after-market trading this evening, it's adding a bit to this lead.
It wasn't so long ago that investors soured on Chipotle, believing its formerly hot growth story to be over. A set of incidents with food-borne illnesses didn't help that sentiment.
Recently, though, growth at Chipotle has thundered back. Efficiency measures have sliced costs, while a muscular effort at online ordering has helped improve overall sales. More growth is in the cards, with both the company and analysts anticipating notable improvements in key fundamentals when the company delivers its Q2 results later this month.
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Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Chipotle Mexican Grill. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
