Pot Stock Euphoria Vanishes as US Legalization Remains Elusive

The stock market’s marijuana boom is over. And for the once high-flying cannabis industry, a euphoric dream of never-ending growth has turned into a survival nightmare as it navigates through the bust.

The comedown has been brutal, with the largest exchange-traded fund tracking the legal weed industry, the AdvisorShares Pure US Cannabis ETF, trading for around $2.37, down 96% from the closing high of $55.05 it hit in February 2021. But the reason it happened is pretty simple.