The Althea Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: AGH) share price is charging higher in morning trade.
At the time of writing the cannabis company's shares are up 13% to 39 cents.
Why is the Althea share price on a high?
Investors have been buying Althea's shares on Tuesday following the release of a market update in relation to the uptake of its medicinal cannabis products in Australia.
According to the release, Althea is closing in fast on the 4,000 patient milestone in Australia after a solid performance in November.
This strong form has carried over into December, resulting in a record first half for the company.
At present an average of 35 new patients are being added every business day. This is a 46% increase from November and a 67% increase from October.
Althea also continues to see an increase in the number of Australian Healthcare Professionals that are prescribing its products. This number has now lifted to 408, up from 390 at the end of November.
Althea CBD100 sales.
The company also provided an update on the sales of its new Althea CBD100 product.
Management advised that sales "have been exceptionally strong", with 206 bottles sold in the first 18 business days of it being available.
Althea CBD100 is a full spectrum cannabis-derived extract oral oil comprising cannabidiol (CBD), along with small traces of terpenoids, flavonoids, and other cannabinoids. It contains less than 1mg per ml of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). This makes Althea CBD100 Althea's most highly concentrated CBD medicinal cannabis product.
It believes that Althea CBD100's full spectrum cannabinoid profile provides it with an advantage over existing products in the market, which are generally 'purified' or 'isolate' CBD.
Althea's CEO, Josh Fegan, appears pleased with the way the company is performing.
He said: "Business is great, with patient numbers, prescriber numbers and product sales all increasing at a healthy rate going into the holiday period. Althea CBD100 has launched successfully and we are already receiving positive feedback from doctors, patients and pharmacists about the product's efficacy and price point."
"In fact, many of our sales have come from prescribers switching their patients to Althea CBD100 from other brands. Althea Concierge continues to underpin the Company's market leading strategy and we are well positioned to continue to improve patient access to medicinal cannabis treatment in Australia and beyond for many years to come," he added.
