Investors in marijuana companies such as Canopy Growth Corp. (TSX:WEED) are betting big on the creation of a legal recreational market in Canada.

Let?s take a look the current situation to see if this is a good time to own these stocks.

Scary valuations

Valuations for marijuana companies are far beyond reason, given the current state of the market.

For example, medical marijuana market leader Canopy Growth reported revenue of about $10 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2016. The company continues to expand at a healthy rate, but that simply isn?t enough to justify a market capitalization of $1.6 billion.

It won't be as obvious as when the pizza person shows up, but customers of Columbia Care’s dispensary in Rochester can get medical marijuana delivered to their door.

For the past several weeks, the company has been testing a program to deliver the tinctures, vaporization oils or capsules to patients in western New York.

Columbia Care is one of five medical marijuana manufacturers licensed by New York, and it operates four dispensaries in various regions. The company also has dispensaries in Manhattan, Long Island and Plattsburgh. It chose to run its pilot delivery program from the dispensary at Eastman Business Park out of convenience to patients and relative ease of getting around the region.

Strainprint^TM Technologies Ltd. ("Strainprint^TM") -- a leader in cannabis patient data collection -- is proud to announce the launch of a revolutionary Cannabis Tracking APP & platform. The mobile APP has been created by patients for patients and is now available for both Apple iOS & Android.

Some say the controversial industry in Lansing is booming…others believe it should be banned but that depends on who you ask.

For Lansing City Pulse Editor Publisher Berl Schwartz, the positives of medical marijuana far outweigh the negatives.

“Lansing should be embracing it, this is a huge, huge economic opportunity for the city,” said Schwartz.

Schwartz says “the ordinance Lansing City Council is considering will kill the medical marijuana business in the city through the use of highly restrictive zoning.”

This is one reason he’s using his newspaper and social media to raise funds for Michigan State University to conduct a study to find out what kind of impact dispensaries have in the Capital City.

The Ohio Department of Commerce announced Friday that medical marijuana growers can start applying for Ohio licenses as early as June.

The application and the license both come at a hefty price — but a Boardman native believes it’s a business venture worth exploring.

Brian Kessler lives in Los Angeles, but is from Boardman.

His company, SBL Venture Capital, invests in marijuana and has been advocating to bring medical marijuana to Ohio for years.

“I’m very excited,” Kessler said. “The fact is that we’re now moving down the path. They chose the process where they’re looking for 12 small growers and 12 large growers.”

Kessler said the medical marijuana market is extremely competitive.

He wants Youngstown to have a stake in the business.

The so-called “prince and princess of pot” Marc and Jodie Emery confirmed that the last of the former Cannabis Culture dispensaries will close its doors this weekend.

Jodie Emery told CP24 that the last standing shop located at 461 Church Street will shut down after being a frequent target of police raids.

There used to be a total of seven Cannabis Culture locations throughout Toronto. The dispensaries were selling marijuana without a medical prescription, which is against the law, at least until recreational marijuana is legalized by the government, a move expected to happen in 2018.

As marijuana becomes legal in more and more places, it’s becoming bigger and bigger business. As something that generates tens of millions in tax revenue, it makes sense that a university would eventually offer a course on the weed business. That’s just what Professor Paul Seaborn at the University of Denver has done. Last week, he launched what KGUN is reporting is the first-ever college course on the economics of marijuana.

Appropriately called “The Business of Marijuana,” the class makes the University of Denver the first AACB-accredited business school in the country to offer a marijuana course. Seaborn first pitched the idea to the university last year.

Bipartisan legislation proposed in the House on Thursday would make marijuana a Schedule 3 drug, removing cannabis from its current standing as a Schedule 1 substance alongside deadly contraband including ecstasy and heroin.

By reclassifying weed in the same category as anabolic steroids, Congress would “make it easier for ill-patients and scientific and medical researchers to obtain marijuana,” the bill’s authors said in a statement Thursday.

Jack Sargent sees a bright future in marijuana.

The retired grandfather of nine wants to grow his Biddeford-based business, The Cannabis Shack, to cater parties – think weddings and barbecues with marijuana-infused food – and open a storefront cannabis bakery. He’s already perfected his recipes, including an “award winning” Hell Sauce 420 hot sauce, brownies and infused salad dressings.

But at least until next year, when the state plans to issue retail licenses, Sargent isn’t allowed to sell any of it. While marijuana use is now legal for adults 21 and over, selling it remains a crime and obtaining it without breaking the law is difficult.

Organigram Holdings Inc. has appointed a medical marijuana, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology industry veteran as its new chief executive officer, Greg Engel. 420 Intel got a chance to sit down and talk to him in an exclusive interview.

Thank you for taking the time for this interview Greg. So you’re a month in as CEO of Organigram, how’s it going so far?

I’m having a lot of fun. It’s been great – coming from the Canadian cannabis industry is a big advantage. Plus I’ve already worked with Organigram on a number of initiatives together before this position.