The gun industry could face strong headwinds in the next few years. During President Trump’s first three years in office, gun sales fell 17 percent, and they are plummeting once again. The gun industry also faces increased market volatility due to a potential protracted trade war, in addition to the financial impact of tariffs on supply chains.
While the vast majority of the gun industry — including gun manufacturers, wholesalers, and dealers — are privately held, a few are publicly traded, providing deeper insights into their size, business practices, and financial health. Here’s a look at their most recent financial quarter.
Editor’s Note: This is the latest installment in a series covering financial updates from the gun industry. Each company’s regulatory reporting time period varies slightly, but generally speaking, this update includes the last quarter of 2024. Prior updates from 2024 are available here. To learn more about the firearm supply chain and how it works, click here.
smith & Wesson
On March 6, Smith & Wesson announced that its quarterly revenue fell short of the market’s expectations, with net sales falling 15.7 percent year-over-year to $115.9 million. The company announced that it expects its revenue for fiscal year 2025 to be approximately 10-percent lower than it was in fiscal year 2024. The company attributed softer demand to “the election results and the impact of persistent inflation.” Shortly after announcing these earnings results, shares of the company fell over 13 percent.
ruger
Departing Ruger CEO Chris Killoy held his last earnings call with the company on February 19 with longtime gun industry executive Todd Seyfert taking the helm on March 1. The company reported 2024 net sales of $536 million, as compared to $544 million in 2023. The company did have an improved last quarter of 2024, driven by high demand for the company’s new 9mm RXM pistol, which was developed with gun accessory manufacturer Magpul. Because the RXM uses Glock-style trigger components and is compatible with many Glock Gen3 parts, it appears to be compatible with third-party “Glock switches.”
ammo inc.
On February 19, NASDAQ issued another deficiency notification letter to Ammo Inc. after the company failed to file its second consecutive quarterly financial report.
As a reminder, on September 24, the company reported that Ammo Inc.’s CFO had resigned at the request of the board, and that it had retained an independent law firm to investigate financial reporting issues at the company. On September 27, the company announced that its independent accounting firm requested that the company disclose that Ammo Inc.’s financial statements from 2021 to 2024 should not be relied upon as part of a financial investigation. After these announcements, several plaintiffs firms announced shareholder class action lawsuits against the company.
olin corporation
The Olin Corporation manufactures Winchester-brand ammunition and a variety of chemical products. (Olin also licenses the “Winchester” name to the FN Browning Group, which owns gun manufacturers FN Herstal and Browning, to manufacture Winchester-branded firearms.)
On January 21, Olin announced that the company had reached an agreement with Ammo Inc. to purchase Ammo Inc.’s ammunition business segment. The $75 million asset purchase agreement includes a 185,000-square-foot production facility and ballistic range in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025, pending the fulfillment of customary closing conditions.
On January 30, Olin reported net income for the quarter of $10.7 million, down from $52.9 million year-over-year. This decrease came despite higher ammunition sales, which the company attributed to military contracts and projects.
vista outdoor
On November 27, Vista Outdoor announced the completion of the sale of its ammunition business, the Kinetic Group, to the Czechoslovak Group (CSG), a Czech conglomerate. The transaction marks a significant shift to foreign ownership for several historic American ammunition brands, including CCI, Federal Premium, Hevi-Shot, Remington, and Speer.