Terra Tech Corp (OTCMKTS:TRTC): A Top Pick For 2017

Terra Tech Corp (OTCMKTS:TRTC) is a name that we covered all last year and was one of our top picks. While shares have pulled back from the highs, TRTC is starting to climb again. TRTC closed the first trading day of the new year at $.33 a share. We expect that by 2018, TRTC will be substantially higher than where it's starting 2017. For those that have not gotten on board, now is the perfect opportunity to take a closer look at TRTC. While 2017 will present plenty of opportunities for nimble traders in TRTC, buy and hold investors can use pullbacks to add to their position. As we look ahead, there are plenty of catalysts in store for 2017 to take TRTC much higher.Terra Tech is a top pick for 2017 for the very simple reason that it's the only US-based, publicly-traded company that touches every aspect of the cannabis life cycle—from cultivation, to extraction, to branding, and with Blum, to retail sale. The numbers support this. Typically retail outlets can pay up to $2,500 per pound of cannabis from cultivators and sell it for about $5,000 per pound. On-site cultivation reduces that cost to about $600-$800 per pound, while the company’s retail price will remain at industry levels and can be as high as $7,000 per pound, depending on the strain.With recreational marijuana use passing in both California and Nevada, there's no company better positioned in those states than Terra Tech. California is the seventh largest economy in the world and its recreational marijuana market will be largest market in the world. In Las Vegas, the city hopes to become the “Amsterdam of the U.S.” While it will take 18 to 24 months for all the specifics to be worked out, Terra Tech's Blum dispensaries will be able to sell cannabis to Las Vegas’ more than 40 million yearly visitors.In Nevada, Terra Tech just opened its fourth Blum dispensary. The new location opened on January 2 at at 1085 South Virginia Street in Reno. The Reno, Nevada Blüm dispensary follows the opening of the Desert Inn Dispensary in October, 2016, the South Decatur Boulevard, Las Vegas Dispensary in August, 2016 and the Western, Las Vegas Dispensary in April, 2016. The Company has also operated a Blüm dispensary in Oakland, California, since April, 2016.The Reno Blüm dispensary will be just like its other dispensaries and offer the Company's proprietary IVXX™ brand of premium medical cannabis, flowers, shatters, waxes and oils, among other high-quality cannabis products from a range of reputable providers of superior grade medical cannabis. This uniformity is the driving force for Terra Tech to become the “Starbucks of Cannabis” with its Blum and IVXX brands. A customer will receive the same experience and same quality products at all Blum locations. CEO Derek Peterson said:

"This is our fourth dispensary in Nevada to open in less than a year, giving us a strong presence in the state. Moreover, in November 2016, Nevada took the historic step of approving the legalization of recreational cannabis. We believe that our efforts to establish Blüm as a leader in the medical cannabis market have uniquely positioned the Company to capitalize on the emerging market for legal cannabis, where we see significant opportunity for growth."

In addition to opening new Blum locations, where we see big opportunity for Terra Tech is in M&A. We can see Terra Tech embarking on an aggressive roll-up strategy of other dispensaries, primarily in California where the market is highly fragmented. This will really grow the top and bottom lines for Terra Tech.Currently trading with a market cap of $181 million, a big concern for shareholders is the outstanding share count has ballooned to 550,527,234 as of December 23. While we admit this is not ideal, Terra Tech's growth far outstrips this dilution. Terra Tech posted revenue growth of 244% in the third quarter. We will see similar growth once the company posts its fourth quarter results as well. Considering that on the November ballots, California, Massachusetts, Maine, and Nevada all voted to legalize marijuana for recreational use, while North Dakota, Arkansas, Montana, and Florida voted for medical use, we believe Green Rush 2.0 is just getting started. That makes TRTC a must-own for cannabis investors. We will be updating our subscribers as soon as we know more.For the latest updates on TRTC, sign up below!Disclosure: We have no position in TRTC and have not been compensated for this article.