Annual sales of cannabis rose considerably on Canada’s east coast according to data from the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation. The release of the NLC’s fourth quarter results took place on June 1, 2022 for the fiscal year 2022 ended April 2.
Net earnings for the quarter were $34.5 million according to the NLC. This represented a decrease of $4.5 million, or 11.6%, compared to the fourth quarter of the fiscal year 2021. Annual net earnings, meanwhile, for totaled $200.9 million year-to-date, which was a tiny rise of $0.3 million or 0.1% from the year previous.
However, sales of cannabis through Licensed Cannabis Retailers (LCRs) registered at $15.2 million in Q4, a healthy 8.5% increase over the last quarter of the prior year. The total for fourth quarter retail cannabis sales (including online) came in at $15.3 million.
The rise in sales may have been helped by the recent price drop in cannabis prices in NL.
Substantial Fiscal Year Increase
The most positive news was a 17.2% increase in total retail cannabis sales for the fiscal year 2022 ($61.0 million) compared to the 2021 total of $52.1 million. However, the NLC also shouldered an increase of $6.8 million in cannabis operating and administrative expenses through the fiscal year. This is mostly because of commissions paid to Tier 1 LCRs as a result of higher sales volumes and a bump in the commission rate paid to these Tier 1 LCRs.
It should be noted that in fiscal 2021 Canopy Growth Inc. repaid $1.9 million in premiums to NLC due to the termination of its supply agreement with the Province and NLC, which contributed to lower than expected expenses in 2021.
NLC now lists over 800 products from 27 suppliers and added an additional two LCRs in the fourth quarter which brings the total store number in the province to 39.
Historic Dividend
Meanwhile, the dividend paid by NLC to the Newfoundland and Labrador government was $38.2 million for the quarter, $0.3 million lower than Q4 of the prior year. This means the total dividend for the fiscal year was $210.0 million, $15.0 million higher than the same period one year ago. This represents the highest dividend paid to the Newfoundland and Labrador government in the NLC’s history.
“I’m extremely proud of the NLC team for their continued commitment to serving Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in all parts of the Province,” said an elated NLC President and CEO Bruce Keating
“This fiscal year, we saw great success thanks to our dedicated team who continued to drive the business forward despite the challenges faced. We’re very proud to have contributed a record of $210 million to fund valuable programs and services in communities across the province. As importantly, we’ve continued to take important steps with respect to our regulatory mandate; corporate governance; corporate responsibility; diversity, inclusion and belonging; and as an employer to more than 600 NLC team members as we work to earn trust in everything we do and strive to become the kind of organizations we believe NLC can be.”