Despite the overall lackluster performance of cannabis stocks in the past couple of months, Innovative Industrial Properties (IIPR) continues to shine.  

Recently, the stock has seen a nice period of stability in the mid $70 range, after recovering from a 52- week low of $40 in March. 

This week IIPR announced it bought an industrial property in Michigan, comprising an aggregate of 115,000 square feet, and Cresco Labs (OTC: CRLBF) signed a lease agreement for it.  

IIPR paid $5.0 million for the property which will be used by Cresco for the cultivation and processing of cannabis products.  IIPR will reimburse Cresco up to $11 million for improvements to the industrial property.

This is the fifth sale-and-leaseback transaction for Cresco and their fourth transaction with IIPR. These transactions have provided over $120 million for Cresco labs over the last seven months. 

Charlie Bachtell, Cresco’s CEO and Co-founder, said, “We are pleased to announce the successful completion of yet another sale-and-leaseback transaction. This is directly aligned with our stated strategy of unlocking valuable capital and building a stronger foundation to support revenue growth, expand our retail presence across Michigan, and enhance shareholder value.  IIPR has been our long-term capital partner across multiple states, and we are pleased to team up with them once again.”

We have been bullish on IIPR for quite some time and we believe that the company not only has a smart business model but offers something extremely valuable to the cannabis industry, especially during these tough economic times. 

Cannabis investors know that during this economic downturn, many companies are struggling to expand, due to a lack of capital.  If cannabis companies want to raise money to buy more property for cultivation and don’t have the cash and financing availability to do so, they could issue more shares, causing dilution, or they can take on more debt which can be very costly.

IIPR offers the solution to this problem.  IIPR is able to help the cannabis industry grow by providing companies with facilities in which to grow their business.  IIPR buys a new property, and then gains a new long term tenant.  Both sides win, without sacrificing shareholder equity.

Overall we remain bullish on IIPR moving into the current environment and we favor the fact that the company will have further opportunities to acquire properties if real estate prices continue to sink.

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IIPR shares were trading at $71.73 per share on Friday afternoon, down $1.31 (-1.79%). Year-to-date, IIPR has declined -4.27%, versus a -12.48% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

About the Author: Aaron Missere

Aaron is an experienced investor who is also the CEO of Departures Capital. His primary focus is on the cannabis industry. He also hosts a weekly show on YouTube about marijuana stocks. Learn more about Aaron’s background, along with links to his most recent articles. More...

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