Investors who bought stocks during the COVID-19 market crash in 2020 have generally experienced some big gains in the past two years. But there is no question some big-name stocks performed better than others since the pandemic bottom.
Aurora's Bumpy Ride: One company that has been a disappointing investment in the past two years has been Canadian cannabis giant Aurora Cannabis Inc (NASDAQ:ACB).
Aurora battled a difficult Canadian cannabis market throughout 2020. The company spent most of 2020 restructuring its business, and cutting costs, including issuing hundreds of layoffs and closing facilities.
At the beginning of 2020, Aurora shares were trading at around $2.25. By the beginning of March, the stock was down to $1.39 after news of the coronavirus spreading in China prompted concerns about a U.S. pandemic.
Aurora bottomed at 60 cents during the pandemic-driven March sell-off.
By May, Aurora completed a 1-for-12 reverse stock split to maintain its listing on the NYSE. Aurora shares initially spiked as high as $19.68 following the reverse split, but the rally stalled at that point until the November presidential election.
A victory by Democrat Joe Biden in November 2020 and a surprise blue wave giving Democrats control of both the Senate and House initially sent cannabis stocks soaring on federal legalization hopes. Unfortunately, Democrats have failed to make any meaningful progress on cannabis reform up to this point.
Aurora In 2022, Beyond: The stock ultimately peaked at $18.98 in February 2021 during a retail investor-fueled short squeeze before pulling all the way back to around $3.69 today.
Unfortunately, investors who bought Aurora on the day it hit its 2020 pandemic low and held on have now generated a negative return on their investment. In fact, $1,000 in Aurora stock bought on March 18, 2020, would be worth about $487 today.
Looking ahead, analysts are expecting Aurora stock to continue to rebound in the next 12 months. The average price target among the 10 analysts covering the stock is $5.06, suggesting 37.6% upside from current levels.
