Hedge fund manager Will Meade says a small investment in pot stocks now could pay off in millions down the line.

The brutal sell-off in marijuana stocks in 2019 has been likened to “2008 for the cannabis industry.”

Others compared it to the blowout in tech stocks in 2000.

Apart from the historical comparisons, what must be especially painful for pot stock investors in 2019 would be the solid returns given off by the rest of the stock market. However, according to hedge fund manager Will Meade, who is also a former Goldman Sachs analyst, 2020 presents a buying opportunity in a sector that is possibly bottoming out.

Further, it is not just low prices. It may be the opportunity of a lifetime to get into a recession-proof “sin” product such as tobacco and liquor.

Guess the best performing sectors since 1900

According to Will Meade, a Credit Suisse analysis showed that the best performing sectors since 1900 were alcohol and tobacco.

“Why, because they are recession-proof products that are addictive with pricing power. I can’t think of any new industry with those characteristics other than marijuana,” tweeted Meade last week.

2019 saw a violent sell-off in pot stocks. However, investors now had another chance to buy, on the cheap, one of the fastest-growing markets over the next decade.

What $ 1000 invested in Altria in 1968 did for your portfolio in 2018

An amount of $ 1000 invested in $MO in 1968 would become $ 6 million 50 years later in 2018.

“You can’t tell me that isn’t a marijuana stock that can’t repeat this performance as marijuana could be like tobacco was in the 50s or 60s,” tweets Meade.

Indeed, Meade thinks marijuana stocks could garner gains of over 590,000% in the next 50 years. By that logic, investors should bung in a few thousands of dollars into a portfolio of cannabis stocks. Hopefully, it would make sinful profits for their future generations.

However, here are some shorter-term triggers for marijuana stocks

One kicker for the beleaguered marijuana industry could be the prospect of possible legalization in 16 US states during 2020. This event could provide a much-needed boost in demand.

Furthermore, the Canadian cannabis industry is likely also to launch a vast bouquet of new products based on cannabis such as edibles, beverages, vapes, and topicals such as lotions and balms. The new products “will completely change the landscape of the market in Canada, and push it a lot closer to a consumer-packaged goods model,” says Bethany Gomez, director of research at the Brightfield Group, a Chicago-based cannabis market research firm.

Of interest here is Ontario-based cannabis producer Canopy. The company received a $4 billion investment from liquor giant Constellation Brands for a 38% stake. The marriage of two “sin” products such as marijuana and alcohol, coupled with a humongous R&D budget, could produce a blockbuster of a cannabis-infused beverage.

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