In 2016, sales of marijuana and marijuana related products surged to almost $7 billion. If that seems like a lot, it’s only just beginning. At this point, almost 30 states have some sort of legalization or decriminalization which shouldn’t be surprising regardless of your views. The continuation of this process is inevitable. As states see not only the progress but the profit from taxes that states such as California are making, all states will push for legalization of the green plant.

In 2014, marijuana sales in the U.S. topped out at around $2.7 billion, with half of that coming from California’s medical marijuana industry. Today, California alone is expected to hit $5 billion in its medical marijuana market once regulations are all ironed out. For scale, the Los Angeles market is alone worth more than $1 billion dollars (the same revenue as Colorado pulled in last year).

By the year 2024, marijuana sales are projected to reach almost $21 billion dollars and some estimations suggesting a much higher number for the whole of the marijuana industry in the U.S. of $50 billion by 2026.

From all these numbers, it is clear that we are still in the very early stages of legalization. The volume of startups involved in the industry is reaching an all time high with most of the companies springing up in the last 5 years.

The market for marijuana does not just include selling weed in a sketchy storefront. The market includes pharmaceuticals made by some of the largest pharma companies in the world, a range of companies devoted solely to edible forms of the plant, satellite companies dedicated to the transportation of money for dispensaries, security companies and every other possibility. The options are endless, and the market will continue to grow as long as there is a place for it.

With the continuation of legalization and decriminalization across the country, the push for this industry is now inevitable.

The market in Nevada for recreational marijuana has made it so price hikes are common and as a result are hurting the state’s medical MJ industry.

The price of medical marijuana in some parts of Nevada “has almost doubled”, according to KTNV TV station. This raises concerns about unaffordable medical cannabis which may force desperate patients to turn to the black market.

An MMJ patient named Emily Wilson says that she knows several patients who have stopped relying on dispensaries and have turned to the black market because of higher medicinal cannabis prices. The general manager of Las Vegas dispensary ‘ReLeaf’ admits to the fact that she has seen a “decrease” in MMJ business according to KTNV TV.

Several Nevada dispensaries are attempting to curb this by incentivizing customers to stay away from the black market with benefits such as letting them go to the front of retail lines as well as making sure products that patients are reliant on are always well stocked.

According to research done by a wholesale marijuana pricing data company named Cannabis Benchmarks, the average price in Nevada for a pound of wholesale marijuana went up almost $400 in the first week of July (right after the recreational market was up and running).

The price hikes are said to be the result of a shortage of inventory caused by the unexpected high volume and popularity of Nevada’s early start rec program. To get the adult-use program off the ground by July 1, retailers had to sell their remaining product from their MMJ inventory in order to get ready for the new regulations.

All of this leads customers to a difficult choice between money and legality. If patients choose to use the black market, it almost defeats the purpose of legalization. Should the government have regulation on the prices of marijuana, or should legalization occur quicker so natural competition can bring prices to an equilibrium?

With a huge push in the last few years for marijuana’s legalization, the industry has never been this high (no pun intended). Since election day in 2016, various states across the U.S. have pushed for legalization for medical and recreational cannabis, leading to the growth of industries doing everything from pharmaceuticals to cash transport and all in between.

The large wave of legalization that took place across the country on election day left many with mostly speculative ideas about where the industry could go, but since the first IPO for cannabis, many have taken the dive into the budding market.

Currently, there are 21 states plus Washington, D.C., that allow the sale of some form of marijuana weather that be medicinal or recreational. This has made for a new market of ancillary companies dedicated to all things related to the industry. With an expected growth from $1.5 billion to almost $4 billion by 2018, the market continues to attract new companies with hopes of breaking in to the current boom we’re seeing.

The industry has stayed at the forefront of trading topics since the first IPO was announced as any smart investor would jump at the prospect of a huge industry on the horizon. With product suppliers, marijuana retailers, dispensaries and more, the need for lawyers, accountants and security consultants becomes extremely relevant. Marijuana has taken over a large part of the market with buzz being generated daily and new highs being hit. Not only is there incredible opportunity for the investment market, but in the ancillary businesses as well.

With no rules or guidelines as to how this market will grow, the possibilities remain unlimited as projections skyrocket for the coming years. It’s no wonder that marijuana has at the top of the trading topics and hype for almost 2 years. Although the federal government still classifies the drug as a schedule 1 narcotic, the hopes that the scheduling will change are slowly coming to fruition. With more and more states pushing for legislation to legalize the plant as well as recreational and medical industries booming, it looks as though the marijuana market is here to stay.

Stocks in the medical marijuana industry have been hitting new highs for almost a year at this point, and the reasons behind it are quite obvious.

To say the least, legal marijuana sales have grown exponentially as states across the U.S. continue to legalize the plant. A report from Marijuana Business Daily titled “Marijuana Business Factbook 2017” stated that sales from legal cannabis could grow by half in 2018, and almost triple from 2016-2021 to an industry worth more than $17 billion. That information alone is enough to bring investors to the table for marijuana’s long term gains.

Another reason behind the industry’s quick rise to fame is the equally quick-changing opinion on marijuana. As the public research the plant more, its medicinal effects outweigh the old stigma’s that cannabis has. A poll from Gallup that has been running for over five decades found that 60% of those surveyed in 2016 wanted to see recreational marijuana legalized nationally. This is compared to only 25% in 1995.

This expansion is across the board as we also see many short-term plans to expand the industry within North America itself. A few months ago, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto signed legislation making medical cannabis legal throughout the country while Canada’s parliament is currently doing the same for recreational marijuana.

All of this leads to great business for marijuana investors and companies, but how does it relate to the consumer? In Canada, the average price for a gram of marijuana increased almost 12% to $6.23, while some averages across the country are all most 20% higher. In other words, companies are passing on taxes and costs to the consumer in an effort to reach higher profits and lower costs. This is not all bad as this leads to a more open market where prices are balanced out by competition. Researchers expect the price to fall as more companies enter the space and capitalism weighs in.

We can’t deny that legal marijuana is a great investment opportunity given all of the figures displaying high industry growth rates. However, there are some clear-cut concerns which leave investors high expectations to not translate into big profits. Until we know what will happen with the industry, make sure to do the research and leave expectations at the door.

The company Aurora Cannabis (NASDAQOTH: ACBFF) has provided a solid platform for investing in the recent months. Shares of this canadian company are up almost 400% in the past year.

Does all this recent gain make Aurora Cannabis an intelligent buy? Here’s a few insights that investors should know before dipping their portfolio into this hot marijuana stock.

Why has this stock soared so much in the recent months? After Aurora’s initial public offering in 2014, the stock plummeted throughout the next year. Despite receiving a highly anticipated license to provide medical marijuana from the Canadian government in November 2015, its stock performance did not reflect the new information.

In the summer of last year, things started to improve for the Canadian company despite the country allowing citizens to grow their own medical marijuana. The improvement is attributed to three pieces of news which generated excitement amongst potential investors.

The first was the announcement that the company would be acquiring CanvasRx, which at the time was Canada’s largest medical marijuana patient outreach service. This acquisition put Aurora at a great advantage as they now had potential to reach a much larger clientele base. Second, the company received financing for net proceeds of around $23 million which the company stated it would use for expanding its operations. Lastly, Aurora’s revenue topped $1 million for the first time in company history.

Around this time, the public became more inclined to invest in marijuana stocks as the industry began to take off. This was partly due to several U.S. states legalizing cannabis recreationally and medically.

All of this is behind the opportunity for the legalization of recreational cannabis in Canada. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has pushed incredibly hard to fulfill one of his campaign promises allowing recreational marijuana throughout the country. If his current efforts come to fruition, marijuana could be recreationally legal in Canada by July 2018.

All of these efforts provide a basis for Aurora to reach new high’s and in addition provide investors with a strong base for whether or not to add Aurora to their portfolio’s.