11/2/2022

speaker
Conference Operator
Call Instructions & Q&A Facilitator

Good afternoon, and welcome to Green Thumb's third quarter 2022 earnings conference call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. A question and answer session will follow the conclusion of formal remarks. During the question and answer session, we would ask for a limit of one question per person. As a reminder, a live audio webcast of the call is available on the investor relations section of Green Thumb's website. and will be archived for replay. I'd like to remind everyone that today's call is being recorded. I will now turn the call over to Shannon Weaver, Director of Communications. Please go ahead.

speaker
Shannon Weaver
Director of Communications

Thank you, Betsy. Good afternoon, and welcome to Green Thumb's third quarter 2022 earnings call. I'm here today with founder and CEO, Ben Kogler, and Chief Financial Officer, Anthony Georgavis. Today's discussion and responses to questions may include forward-looking statements which are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from these statements. These risks and uncertainties are detailed in the earnings press release issued today, along with the reports filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulators, including the 2021 annual report filed on Form 10-K. This report, along with today's earnings release, can be found under the Investors section of our website. Green Thumb assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this call. Throughout the discussion, Green Thumb will refer to non-GAAP financial measures, including EBITDA and adjusted operating EBITDA, a reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures, is included in our earnings press release and SEC and CEDAR filings. Please note that all financial information is provided in U.S. dollars unless otherwise indicated. Thanks, everyone, and now here's Ben.

speaker
Ben Kogler
Founder and CEO

Thank you, Shannon. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining our third quarter conference call. Green Thumb reported record revenue and adjusted operating EBITDA results even in the face of rising inflation and greater economic uncertainty. Revenue increased 12% year-over-year and 3% quarter-over-quarter to $261 million. We had positive gap net income for the ninth consecutive quarter. Adjusted operating EBITDA grew 7% sequentially to $84 million, or 32% of revenue for the quarter, and $230 million year-to-date. Finally, our cash flow from operations was $48 million for the quarter and $88 million year-to-date. We feel good about these results, and I think we are positioned to finish the year with solid performance. That said, no one has a crystal ball on when inflation will come under control and how much it will impact consumer spending, particularly in this new industry. Despite these challenges, consumer demand for legal cannabis remains healthy. While there is price compression in certain markets, unit growth increased 22% year-over-year, according to PDSA. We believe this is a clear indicator that cannabis is an essential purchase for American consumers. As I said before, cannabis is a branded consumer packaged goods business, and its growth continues to over-index other CPG categories, like domestic beer, which declined 1% year-over-year. Green Thumb continues to build strong brand loyalty with products like Rhythm Flower and Dog Walkers Pre-Rules. Finally, we are operating in highly attractive states. We are seeing strong momentum in new adult use markets like New Jersey and look forward to similar results in Rhode Island, which is expected to launch adult use on December 1st, and Connecticut, which should launch in the next six months. In addition, Green Thumb is well-positioned in both Virginia and New York, for when those states come online with adult use. Zooming out, the U.S. cannabis industry generated sales of over $6.6 billion in the third quarter, which equates to a run rate of over $26 billion. That is 3% growth year over year and 2% growth quarter over quarter for the industry. In contrast, Green Thumb grew 13% year over year and 3% quarter over quarter. Obviously, we are proud of that achievement, but we are focused on the future. We are laying the foundation for industry-leading growth as demonstrated by our disciplined capital spending, creative partnerships, and our commitment to good old hard work. The recent Biden executive order and potential passage of the SAFE Act, as Senator Schumer alluded to earlier this week, are positive news for the industry. We continue to operate with a healthy degree of skepticism that keeps us focused on protecting against downside risk, which to us means staying focused on cash flow and our balance sheet. Even with all the noise in the marketplace, Green Thumb's cash actually grew in the third quarter. We paid all of our taxes, and we extended our debt agreement to April 30, 2025. We believe that worrying about the downside is equally important as planning for the upside. and can actually create more value for stakeholders over time. Market demand for cannabis will continue to give us a runway of opportunity, and our recently announced innovative partnership with Circle K, the global convenience store retailer, is a prime example of that. As many of you know, Florida is an interesting and unique market. For starters, it is the third largest cannabis market in the US, with annualized sales of over $2 billion, in what is still a medical-only market. The other unique attribute about Florida is that there is no cap on the number of dispensaries that license holders may open. As we announced on October 19th, we plan to expand our medical retail footprint in Florida through leasing arrangements with Circle K. As the first phase of our test and learn rollout, subject to regulatory approvals, we plan to open approximately 10 Rise Express branded medical dispensaries. Through this exclusive agreement, Green Thumb can lease space adjacent to Circle K stores in Florida, where the retailer currently operates approximately 600 locations. The Rise Express stores will offer patients with a valid medical marijuana identification card expanded access to a selection of branded medical cannabis products, including Rhythm Flower, Dog Walkers Pre-Rolls, Incredibles Gummies, and Anshine Bakes. And while we've had a presence in Florida since 2018 and currently operate seven medical dispensaries, we believe opening Rise Express can change the game. Convenience is a strong channel in retail, and people, including medical cannabis patients, want more convenient access to cannabis. The new Rise Express model is a huge step forward in normalizing cannabis through routine access. Now patients will be able to pick up a pack of dog walkers or Incredibles in the same trip as they fill up their tank of gas. A lot of forethought and preparation went into making this agreement possible. For example, we are near completion of our new cultivation facility in Ocala, Florida, which will supply products for the Rise Express stores. So to comply with Florida's integrated supply and production regulations, it was critical to make this investment well in advance of expanding our retail footprint so we have the product ready. Capital allocation decisions like this require long-range planning to position our company for future returns and value creation. Before I turn the call over to Anthony to review the financials, I want to address the recent departure of three Green Thumb board members. Unfortunately, it was a situation where opinions diverged, and while we worked behind the scenes for quite a while to find a resolution, it became clear we could not find the common ground and those individuals elected to leave the company. I am grateful for all the guidance and insight we received from our former directors. Fortunately, we have two new great board members. Richard Drexler, a seasoned financial executive with strong board and audit experience, and Jeff Goldman, who has operated and scaled multiple branded CPG businesses. We look forward to benefiting from their considerable experience and fresh perspectives. We are excited to move forward with a team and board who understand the inherent challenges of operating a federally illegal business and are committed to our goal of maximizing shareholder value. Finally, I want to emphasize that strong corporate governance remains a top priority for Green Thumb. We believe it is especially relevant to the important work we are doing day in and day out to assure our stakeholders that their company is in good hands and has a leadership team aligned with their interests. We continue to actively recruit new board members in preparation for our potential U.S. listing.

Disclaimer

This conference call transcript was computer generated and almost certianly contains errors. This transcript is provided for information purposes only.EarningsCall, LLC makes no representation about the accuracy of the aforementioned transcript, and you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the information provided by the transcript.

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