Making a name for oneself in the very-crowded cannabis industry sometimes involves changing one’s look or even one’s identity.
No matter what they are called, stocks in the health-care industry (under which cannabis concerns fall) gained 0.8% in the United States, while in Canada, the sector wilted 1%.
Dallas-based Puration, Inc. (OTC: PURA) told investors Thursday it will reveal its new brand name behind its horizontal CBD consumer product expansion into a $500-billion new market opportunity next Tuesday. While it’s doing that, PURA will include highlights on its overall expansion plans.
The company's expansion plan is built on a solid base CBD beverage business. The company recently reported $1.6 million in revenue with $471,000 in gross profit primarily from sales of its EVERx CBD Sports Water. Sales YTD grew 48% compared to the same period last year.
PURA shares raced 20.7% by noon EDT Thursday to 1.81 cents, on volume of 21.2 million shares.
On another health front, that of aiming for victories over COVID-19, there’s Toronto-based Therma Bright Inc. (TSX-Venture: THRM), which is a progressive medical device technology company. Thursday, the company signed a co-development definitive agreement with Orpheus Medica Inc.
The hookup will allow Therma access to Orpheus' novel biological platform and the joint development of a rapid saliva test for the screening and detection of the virus (SARS-CoV-2) causing COVID-19.
Therma will commit up to $300,000 for Phase 1 (of three) which will focus on the identification of anti-COVID-19 poly-peptides to be utilized in the test prototype development stage. Therma and Orpheus expect Phase 1 to take approximately 45 days to complete. Therma and Orpheus have identified several 3rd party providers to assist with the Phase 1 development path.
THRM shares sprang to life by early afternoon Thursday by 2.35 cents, or 18.8%, to 14.88 cents, on volume of 84,000 shares.
