Post by BEAC0NJET on May 15, 2017 9:42:07 GMT -5
People have stopped buying guns since Trump took office
nypost.com/2017/05/14/people-have-stopped-buying-guns-since-trump-took-office/amp/
nypost.com/2017/05/14/people-have-stopped-buying-guns-since-trump-took-office/amp/
The gun run appears to have jammed.
In the five full months since Donald Trump was elected president, the FBI has undertaken 1.6 million fewer firearm background checks compared with the same period a year earlier, government statistics show, reflecting slower sales.
While the FBI checks don’t exactly track firearm sales, they are a good barometer of the direction of the market, according to analysts.
The drop-off, which represents a more than 12 percent slide in checks from December to the end of April, is the second-biggest drop ever since the FBI started collecting statistics on it in late 1998.
The cooling is a stark turnaround from the pace in the runup to Election Day, when FBI background checks rose for 19 straight months — and when gunmakers reported robust sales increases.
In each month from December through April, background checks have fallen — albeit in moderating terms. From December through February, background checks fell 16.4, 19.7 and 14.5 percent, respectively. In March and April, the declines were down to 3.6 and 4.7 percent, respectively.
The decline in background checks and sales since Nov. 8 has hurt gunmakers and gun retailers — with their stocks down sharply. Shares of American Outdoor, maker of Smith & Wesson brand guns, are down 18 percent since Election Day. Vista Outdoor, maker of Savage brand guns and ammunition under several brands, has seen its shares fall 43 percent since Nov. 8. Shares of a third gunmaker, Sturm Ruger, are down 1.3 percent over that span.
Over the same period, the S&P 500 is up 12 percent.
Complicating matters is the fact that many retailers bet wrong on who would win the White House — loading up on inventory thinking Hillary Clinton would win and gun enthusiasts, sensitive to possible stricter gun control laws, would buy more arms.
“They called that wrong,” Debney said.
In addition to sales and stock prices, the clipped gun market is also affecting deals.
The sale of one gun distributor, in the works for months, collapsed right after President Trump got elected, one banker in the gun space, who requested his name not be used, told The Post.
Sales are probably going to continue to flag for the next four years — and manufacturers are likely to merge in order to stem the bleeding, he said.
Gunmakers are not in a “super cycle” as in the Obama era, and profits could be down by 30 percent, one major investor, who has considered buying a gun company, told The Post. Still, the investor expected growth to return at some point.
Even after a rough start to the year, some gunmakers could still hit their targets.
American Outdoor’s shares have shot up nearly 23 percent since March 23, after first- quarter results topped Wall Street expectations.
In the five full months since Donald Trump was elected president, the FBI has undertaken 1.6 million fewer firearm background checks compared with the same period a year earlier, government statistics show, reflecting slower sales.
While the FBI checks don’t exactly track firearm sales, they are a good barometer of the direction of the market, according to analysts.
The drop-off, which represents a more than 12 percent slide in checks from December to the end of April, is the second-biggest drop ever since the FBI started collecting statistics on it in late 1998.
The cooling is a stark turnaround from the pace in the runup to Election Day, when FBI background checks rose for 19 straight months — and when gunmakers reported robust sales increases.
In each month from December through April, background checks have fallen — albeit in moderating terms. From December through February, background checks fell 16.4, 19.7 and 14.5 percent, respectively. In March and April, the declines were down to 3.6 and 4.7 percent, respectively.
The decline in background checks and sales since Nov. 8 has hurt gunmakers and gun retailers — with their stocks down sharply. Shares of American Outdoor, maker of Smith & Wesson brand guns, are down 18 percent since Election Day. Vista Outdoor, maker of Savage brand guns and ammunition under several brands, has seen its shares fall 43 percent since Nov. 8. Shares of a third gunmaker, Sturm Ruger, are down 1.3 percent over that span.
Over the same period, the S&P 500 is up 12 percent.
Complicating matters is the fact that many retailers bet wrong on who would win the White House — loading up on inventory thinking Hillary Clinton would win and gun enthusiasts, sensitive to possible stricter gun control laws, would buy more arms.
“They called that wrong,” Debney said.
In addition to sales and stock prices, the clipped gun market is also affecting deals.
The sale of one gun distributor, in the works for months, collapsed right after President Trump got elected, one banker in the gun space, who requested his name not be used, told The Post.
Sales are probably going to continue to flag for the next four years — and manufacturers are likely to merge in order to stem the bleeding, he said.
Gunmakers are not in a “super cycle” as in the Obama era, and profits could be down by 30 percent, one major investor, who has considered buying a gun company, told The Post. Still, the investor expected growth to return at some point.
Even after a rough start to the year, some gunmakers could still hit their targets.
American Outdoor’s shares have shot up nearly 23 percent since March 23, after first- quarter results topped Wall Street expectations.
