By Nichola Saminather
TORONTO, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Canopy Growth Corp WEED.TO, Canada's biggest marijuana producer, said on Wednesday its third-quarter revenue doubled and profit rose, even as analysts expected a loss.
Net profit rose to C$11 million from C$3 million a year earlier. Analysts, on average, looked for a loss of $7.1 million. The earnings included a one-time gain of C$8.8 million from the sale of Canopy's Agripharm business.
Earnings per share fell to 1 Canadian cent from 3 Canadian cents as the number of outstanding shares rose. Excluding the one-time gain, the company had a loss of 2 Canadian cents, compared with expectations for a loss of 5 Canadian cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Quarterly revenue jumped 123 percent to C$21.7 million ($17.26 million), but missed the average analyst estimate of C$24.2 million.
Smiths Falls, Ontario-based company Canopy is at the center of the investor frenzy surrounding Canadian marijuana companies ahead of the national legalization of recreational use this year.
Its shares closed at C$26.72 on Tuesday, about three times its price just six months ago.
The company and rivals Aurora Cannabis ACB.TO , Aphria APH.TO , MedReleaf LEAF.TO , Hydropothecary Corp THCX.V and Tilray, owned by private equity firm Privateer Holdings, all said Wednesday they had signed supply agreements with the province of Quebec. already has multiyear commitments to supply Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland & Labrador and New Brunswick.
Canopy posted record German sales of C$1 million in the quarter, all from domestic Canadian production.
In addition to recreational use in Canada, companies like Canopy are ramping up supply to export to countries including Germany, Peru and Australia, which have legalized medical cannabis, with more nations expected to follow.
The company recorded patient growth of 138 percent in the quarter, and sales rose 87 percent to a record 2,330 kilograms. The average sale price climbed 13 percent to C$8.30 per gram.
It had cash and cash equivalents of C$237.7 million at the end of the quarter.
($1 = 1.2576 Canadian dollars)