Many investors in high-growth stocks are wondering if they should buy the e-commerce platform provider Shopify (TSX:SHOP)(NYSE:SHOP) after a powerful rally in its shares since they hit the December low.

This question is not an easy one to answer, given the stock’s highly volatile short-term trading pattern. Shopify stock has fallen almost every time after going through a strong rally during the past one year. This boom-and-bust cycle hasn’t been good for those who are in the market for short-term gains and couldn’t time the next dip or an upside move.

Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC) shares skyrocketed following news that it plans on entering the U.S. hemp market, and that has investors scrambling to figure out which pot stock could be next to deliver marketing-beating returns. The marijuana market is worth $150 billion annually, according to the United Nations, so the top cannabis companies could enjoy remarkable growth as marijuana prohibition lessens worldwide.

How time flies. It’s only February, and it’s almost been four months since cannabis was legalized nationwide. Since October 17, we’ve already seen one marijuana producer release earnings that included months of legal cannabis sales. But so far, the big players, Canopy Growth Corp (TSX:WEED)(NYSE:CGC) and Aurora Cannabis Inc (TSX:ACB)(NYSE:ACB) have yet to do so.

That all changes next week.

Marijuana stocks as a group might have performed poorly in 2018, but 2019 is a totally different story.

Many of these stocks stormed out of the gate in January and haven't looked back.

We asked three Motley Fool contributors who closely monitor the cannabis industry to identify their top marijuana stocks to watch in February.

Here's why they chose Aphria(NYSE:APHA), Origin House (NASDAQOTH:ORHOF), and Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY).

Eleven Canadian penny stocks hoped a name change would propel them into the next investor frenzy.

Last year, these stocks, hovering around US$1 changed their name to include "cannabis" in the hopes that their share price would get a lift from the pot investing craze. But they weren’t so lucky. Since each changed their name, the penny stocks dropped an average of 30.2 per cent through Feb. 6 and only one -- Trulieve Cannabis Corp. -- rose through yesterday’s close.

Prior to the name change, more than half of these penny stocks were involved in the precious metals business. For example, SpeakEasy Cannabis Club used to be called Hadley Mining and Integrated Cannabis Co. bore the name CNRP Mining Inc.

Millennial investors can't get enough of cannabis stocks, according to data from financial-service providers.

On Robinhood, a free-trading app popular among younger traders, three of the four most-added stocks over the past week were marijuana producers, including Aurora Cannabis (+25,051 shareholders), Cronos (+18,148 shareholders) and Aphria (+9,101 shareholders).

Cannabis stocks were mixed on Thursday after the Canadian government released statistics that showed the number of users of weed has barely changed since full legalization last October.

Canadian pot producer Tilray (TLRY) will supply CBD ingredients to be used in wellness products backed by golfing legend Greg Norman, under a deal announced Thursday with Ohio-based cannabis company Green Growth Brands. Tilray stock was down Thursday, while other marijuana stocks marched higher.

Under the terms of the deal, GGB Beauty, a subsidiary of Green Growth Brands, entered into a licensing agreement with Norman and Authentic Brands Group, a company that owns or provides development services for a wide range of well-known retailers.

If there was one investment that took the financial markets by storm in 2018, it was marijuana stocks. The group, headlined by Canopy Growth (NYSE:CGC), Tilray(NASDAQ:TLRY), Aurora (NYSE:ACB) and Cronos(NASDAQ:CRON), wasn’t well known to investors at the beginning of last year. But, by October, these stocks were flying high, with many of them more than doubling between July and October.

Snoop Dogg’s logo could be counter to Cannabis Act marketing rules, says David Lipkus, a partner at Kestenberg Siegal Lipkus LLP and trademark agent.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have opposed a trademark owned by celebrity Snoop Dogg’s cannabis brand, but apart from its alleged similarity to the team’s logo, the brand, on its own, may also fail to be compliant with Canada’s regulations governing the marketing of cannabis products, say IP lawyers.

The Cannabis Act prohibits marketing that appeals to minors or has a direct or indirect endorsement or testimonial. “That, to me, is celebrity endorsement,” says Lipkus. “I don't know how that issue will be overcome by the applicant.”