ASX cannabis shares had a difficult month in November, with most majors finishing deep in the red.
Scrolling through the extensive list of Aussie cannabis stocks, it's abundantly clear that the sector experienced a wide sell-off. This coincided with weakness in the overall ASX healthcare sector.
We've sifted through the ASX cannabis basket to identify the diamonds in November's rough.
These 3 ASX cannabis shares were the top performers over the month.
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Incannex Healthcare Ltd (ASX: IHL)
Shares in medicinal ASX cannabis company Incannex Healthcare lit up in November, finishing 41% higher at a new 52-week peak.
Investors responded positively to a suite of updates from Incannex. Most notable was an ethics committee's approval of the company's Phase 2a trial examining the effects of psilocybin on primary anxiety disorder.
Incannex is chasing a remedial breakthrough for this complex mental health ailment, which typically responds poorly to conventional treatments. Psychedelics such as psilocybin are gaining recognition as a potential primary line of defence to treat and manage these kinds of disorders without overloading patients with a cocktail of tablets.
Aside from this, the company successfully raised more than $17.5 million via an options exercise program. This beefed up the balance sheet and secured ample liquidity to fund its clinical trial programs.
The Incannex share price is up 246% this year to date. It finished Thursday's session at 52.5 cents, up 6.06% for the day.
Cronos Australia Ltd (ASX: CAU)
Cronos Australia aims to become a leading health and wellness company in the Asia Pacific through the creation and distribution of premium medical and consumer cannabinoid products and services.
It currently distributes its Adaya and Peace Naturals range of medicinal cannabis labels throughout Australia. It also owns more than 75% of another medicinal cannabis company, Cannadoc Health Pty Ltd.
Cronos shares exhibited a steady climb in November despite a lack of price-sensitive news from the company. Investors opened long positions in the ASX cannabis player and sent its share price 23.5% higher over the month. That's a 61.5% gain since 4 January as the stock reclaims territory lost in 2020 due to various challenges.
Cronos shares finished Thursday's session at 19 cents, down 5% for the day.
Emyria Ltd (ASX: EMD)
The Emyria share price was a clear outperformer in November. It closed the month with a 98% gain and nudged past its 52-week high.
The big upside move in Emyria's share price came after it announced a strategic investment on 22 November. The investment was made by one of Australia's largest private investment groups, Tattarang.
The name might sound familiar because Tattarang is owned by Dr Andrew 'Twiggy' Forrest AO. He's also the chairman and founder of ASX 200 giant Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG).
The $5 million investment was made via a share placement at a price of 25 cents. This gives Tattarang a 7.3% stake in the ASX cannabis company.
Emyria will allocate the funds to its synthetic cannabinoid programs with the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The company will also allocate some money to the development of its novel MDMA-analogue treatment alongside the University of Western Australia.
This ASX cannabis share may have given up some of its November gains already but its share price is still 280% higher this year to date. The company's shares closed at 38.5 cents on Thursday, down 3.75% for the day.
