About a year ago, Aphria Inc. (TSX:APHA)(NYSE:APHA) was trading at a premium until disaster struck: then all hell broke loose.

The cannabis producer has been hounded by controversies after controversies.

Frankly, the entire cannabis sector and weed stocks are hyper-volatile. But Aphria’s case is the most baffling.

Do you focus primarily on the positive side of things or the negative? How you answer that question will probably determine what you make of the stock performances of Cronos Group (NASDAQ:CRON) and Green Thumb Industries (NASDAQOTH:GTBIF) so far this year.

Cronos and Green Thumb Industries (GTI) have delivered impressive year-to-date gains. But both marijuana stocks have also given up even bigger gains and are well off their highs from earlier in 2019. Which stock is the better pick for long-term investors now? Here's what you need to know about Cronos and GTI.

Let's face it: Aurora Cannabis (NYSE: ACB) and Canopy Growth (NYSE: CGC) are pretty much in a league of their own among marijuana stocks. They have the biggest market caps, the highest production capacities, and the most significant international operations.

Which smaller Canadian marijuana stock has the best shot at joining the ranks with these top-tier players? By smaller, I'm referring to small-cap stocks with market caps of less than $2 billion, which excludes Cronos Group and Tilray from consideration.

The three obvious candidates are Aphria (NYSE: APHA), Organigram (NASDAQ: OGI), and HEXO (NYSEMKT: HEXO). Here's why these companies seem to have the best chances of joining Aurora and Canopy at the top of the pack.

We all remember cannabis stocks last summer. The headlines were everywhere, so even if you weren’t really into investing, you still knew that these stocks were hot. After remaining relatively stagnant for years in some cases, suddenly legalization was coming and people were buying up these stocks like they were going out of style.

But then there was that severe drop, seen on the graph below. Across the board, legalization came and went and shares plummeted during October and December. It looks like most stocks have begun to rebound at least a bit, if not to those all-time highs. So, will the cannabis industry see another red-hot summer?

A third consecutive quarter of EBITDA-positive quarterly results underlines why 48North Cannabis Corp (OTCMKTS: NCNNF) deserves a higher valuation. The stock has been on an impressive run, since the start of the year, despite coming under pressure in recent weeks.

NCNNF catalysts and price analysis

In addition to delivering impressive financial results, the Company has continued to strengthen its long-term prospects, having embarked on an aggressive expansion drive. The Company is in the process of opening one of the world’s largest licensed outdoor cannabis operations a development that continues to excite investors

Tilray (TLRY), a cannabis producer in Canada, was 2018's best-performing stock, thanks to a stratospheric run in September of that year amid a stampede into marijuana stocks. More recently, Tilray stock got a bump in early May after its quarterly sales beat estimates. But is Tilray stock a buy right now?

For better or worse, marijuana is the most popular investment opportunity right now, with the industry slated to see sales grow between fourfold and sixfold by 2030. Among the dozens upon dozens of pot stocks for investors to choose from, it's Aurora Cannabis(NYSE: ACB) that clocks in as the favorite.

But London’s three bricks-and-mortar marijuana stores — all of them open seven days a week — say they have ample supply and don’t plan to decrease operating hours.

The Hobo Recreational Cannabis Store in Ottawa and Canna Cabana in Hamilton are cutting back their hours — closing one day of the week and reducing hours on others — in response to lack of supply.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if the other stores started doing the same thing,” said Michael Armstrong, a professor at Brock University’s Goodman School of Business who studies Canada’s cannabis industry.

Although it's still very early in the legalization process, marijuana offers the potential of being a once-in-a-lifetime growth opportunity. After racking up only $5.4 billion in global legal sales in 2015, Cowen Group analyst Vivien Azer foresees $75 billion in worldwide sales pot sales by 2030. If accurate, this would equate to a compound annual growth rate of better than 19%.

In case you haven't been paying attention, the marijuana industry has been the buzz on Wall Street for more than two years, and for very good reason. With Canada lifting the curtain on nine decades of recreational prohibition, and more than 40 countries worldwide waving the green flag on medical cannabis, the red carpet is being rolled out for the legal cannabis movement. The massive marijuana industry that's existed in the black market for decades is steadily moving into the legal landscape, providing an opportunity for investors to make bank.