If You're a Long-Term Growth Investor, This Is the Sector to Be Focusing On, and It Has Nothing to Do With Artificial Intelligence

Source The Motley Fool

Key Points

  • Globally, the cannabis industry could be worth $1.4 trillion by 2034.

  • The U.S. government has recently rescheduled some marijuana products, which was a huge milestone for the industry.

  • Cannabis stocks carry risk, but they also have a lot of potential upside.

  • 10 stocks we like better than Tilray Brands ›

Investing for the long term takes patience and discipline to stay the course. It's not necessarily easy, but the payoff can be significant. Right now, a lot of the hype is around Nvidia and other tech stocks involved with artificial intelligence, but many of those stocks are already trading at exceptionally high valuations. For investors, that means there may not be much more upside available.

Instead, there's another compelling option to consider that's outside of tech, and that may be a more intriguing opportunity for growth investors: cannabis.

Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »

Investor looking at a chart.

Image source: Getty Images.

The cannabis market could take off over the next several years

The U.S. hasn't legalized cannabis, but it has recently rescheduled FDA-approved marijuana products from Schedule I to Schedule III, which is a huge milestone for the industry. More reform could be coming, and the hope is that this could be the first step toward potentially legalization in the future. That's not on the horizon just yet, and there's no guarantee what will happen in the future, but the government does appear to be considering the benefits of marijuana, which is an encouraging sign.

According to estimates from Fortune Business Insights, the global cannabis market could be worth more than $1.4 trillion by 2034, up from just under $138 billion this year. This assumes greater legalization and access to medical and recreational products, and it highlights the significant potential for growth as this translates into a compounded annual growth rate of more than 34%.

Investing in cannabis stocks comes with risk, but the payoff could be huge

One of the most popular cannabis stocks to invest in is Tilray Brands (NASDAQ: TLRY), a Canadian-based company that has long been eyeing opportunities in the U.S. market. It has even expanded into U.S. craft brewers as a way to expand its presence in the U.S. without having to rely on marijuana legalization.

Tilray is not necessarily the safest cannabis stock to own, as it routinely incurs losses and continues to burn through cash. But when there is talk of legalization, or there are hopes of reform in the U.S., it often surges in value. There are also multi-state operators to consider, such as Curaleaf Holdings and Trulieve Cannabis, which may more directly benefit from marijuana rescheduling in the U.S.

Regardless of the stock, however, investing in cannabis will involve taking on some risk. But if you're willing to do so and can be patient and hang on for the long haul, buying these types of stocks while their valuations are low can result in significant gains later on, making them potentially enticing options for growth-oriented investors.

Should you buy stock in Tilray Brands right now?

Before you buy stock in Tilray Brands, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Tilray Brands wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $477,813!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,320,088!*

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*Stock Advisor returns as of May 25, 2026.

David Jagielski, CPA has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends Tilray Brands. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Disclaimer: For information purposes only. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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