Columbia Care downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen

Cowen analyst Vivien Azer downgraded Columbia Care to Market Perform from Outperform with a price target of $1.15, down from $2.10. The SAFE Act, legislation to open banking services to marijuana businesses, was left out of the government funding package, Azer tells investors in a research note. The analyst believes the lack of progress on SAFE increases the risk that a deal between Cresco and Columbia may not be completed. If the deal fails to close, Cresco would be hurt by potential for an "industry-wide shakeout given their reliance on third party retail partners," Azer contends. And if the deal does close, the analyst sees "large scale" integration risk in an environment without SAFE. "We are cognizant of the significant headwind to sentiment that has been established with SAFE not being included in the omnibus bill," she writes.