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Chicago-based marijuana multistate operator Verano Holdings reported a record-breaking year for revenue in 2023 despite a net loss in its fourth-quarter and full-year financial results.
Revenue increased to $938 million in 2023, a 7% increase from the previous year, the company said Thursday.
Verano generated $73 million in free cash flow in 2023, up from $25 million in 2022.
Fourth-quarter revenue was $237 million, a 5% increase from the previous year and a 1% decrease from the previous quarter.
The company reported a net loss of $113 million for the year and $73 million in the fourth quarter, driven by an increase in allocation for income taxes, according to a news release.
Verano’s results were in line with expectations, investor analyst Frederico Gomes of Calgary, Alberta-based ATB Capital Markets wrote in a memo Thursday.
“During the (fourth) quarter, Florida was the largest contributor to retail revenue ($59.7 million), followed by Illinois ($29.3 million) and New Jersey ($26.3 million),” Gomes wrote.
“New Jersey was the largest contributor to net wholesale sales ($15.5 million), followed by Illinois ($11.0 million) and Connecticut ($10.3 million).”
Verano CEO George Archos attributed the revenue growth to increased store numbers, new brands and product innovation.
At the end of 2023, Verano had 136 stores (now 138) and more than 70 new products, with brands Savvy and Bits making up 22% of net revenue within a year of their launch, Archos said during the company’s earnings call.
Adult-use cannabis market launches in Connecticut and Maryland were smoothly executed, according to Archos, and the company has become more cost-efficient by automating some of its production processes, reducing its capital expenditures to $36 million in 2023, down from $119 million in 2022.
While the company reported adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $305 million for the full year, Verano’s total current liabilities are more than $412 million and its total long-term liabilities exceeded $670 million.
As for whether Verano will endeavor to seek a tax refund from the IRS such as the one Trulieve Cannabis reported Thursday, Chief Financial Officer Brett Summerer said the company was investigating the possibility.
“We are evaluating what happened with that and whether we can support it from our perspective as well,” he said during the earnings call.
Shares of Verano are traded on the Cboe Canada stock exchange as VRNO after making the move from the Canadian Securities Exchange in October.
Kate Robertson can be reached at kate.robertson@mjbizdaily.com.
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