Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY) ranked as the best Canadian marijuana stock by far in 2018. It's been a different story this year, though. And one analyst thinks Tilray will probably continue to lag behind its peers in 2019.

Investment firm Jefferies initiated coverage of Tilray last week with an "underperform" rating.

Sudbury will become home to two new pot shops in the coming months, and city council is trying to determine how to address the increased presence of marijuana on the streets.

Earlier this year, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario announced the Nickel City would become home to a shop operated by Anton Lucic, which will open near Milestones restaurant, as well as a second outlet, operated by Saturninus Partners. A location for this retail shop has yet to be confirmed.

Big things are afoot in the marijuana industry. Following the legalization of recreational pot in Canada this past October, the legal weed industry has been validated like never before. As a result, global sales projections for cannabis are going through the roof. Some investment banks on Wall Street predict that annual sales could hit as high as $75 billion by 2030.

Marijuana stocks have been on fire for much of the past year. In the run up to legalization, many of them climbed to eye-watering valuations from relative obscurity. If you’re looking to invest in a weed stock now, you’re probably a bit late.

The undeniable leader in this space is still Ontario-based Canopy Growth (TSX:WEED)(NYSE:CGC). South of the border, Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY) seems to be the local favourite. Both have been exceptionally great investments for investors over the past few years, but they now trade at many multiples of their annual sales.

Over the past few years, there’s been a lot of interest in cannabis from other industries. While most of it has been just tire kicking, there have been a couple of big deals, most notably involving Constellation Brands and Canopy Growth.

The month of March decided to show its ugly volatile head during the beginning, but as we now head toward the second half, it looks as though things may be turning just the other way. For anyone who invests or has invested in the cannabis industry, volatility does seem to be quite a common theme throughout.

This theme, while not ideal for some, has shown itself to be one of the greatest reasons to partake in the industry. Many investors have found that volatility is a characteristic that they can get behind because it allows for large gains, but also large losses. All in all, there are some stocks that have shown large amounts of potential for the future of the industry.

It was a fairly uneventful day in Canadian weedstocks on Monday, as the heavy-hitting news flow emanated down south. The Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF (HMMJ) finished up modestly (↑1.29%), taking its cues from the major U.S. indexes.

But as usual, a handful of sector standouts took shape. Midas Letter recaps the non-Village Farms movers that most caught our attention.

A proposed cannabis grow-op in Yellowknife got a warm reception from city councillors on Monday.

"You have somebody who wants to actually produce something that will be sold in the territory, that's a rarity up here. This should be applauded," Coun. Niels Konge said.

The warehouse facility would be located in the Engle Business District at 92 Falcon Road, west of the Yellowknife Airport.

Jordan Harker, the man behind the pitch, said the business is not affiliated with growers in southern Canada.

"We're looking at about 10 to 12 full-time jobs with probably 15 to 25 part-time jobs," he told city council during a committee meeting on Monday.

"It's our goal to be competitive with pricing."

It seems there are reasons to be both bullish and bearish about the near-term prospects of hemp-based CBD products. In January, cannabis producer Tilray Inc. (NASDAQ:TLRY) made waves after announcing plans to acquire Manitoba Harvest from Compass Group Diversified Holdings for $419 million in cash and shares. According to the Nanaimo-based grower, Manitoba Harvest is “the world’s largest hemp food manufacturer.” This acquisition is just the latest in the rush to get into the hemp space from the major growers, and Tilray in particular plans to accelerate its expansion into the US and Canadian CBD markets.

It’s the first tangible fruit produced from a nationwide search by Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) to enlist more federally sanctioned suppliers in a bid to ease a cannabis supply shortage that’s led to a moratorium on issuing new retail licences in the province.

While it brings the number of AGLC suppliers to 19, it’s not expected to be enough to lift the moratorium — which was put in place in November — any time soon, said commission spokeswoman Chara Goodings.