Jun 21, 2019

Gunmaker American Outdoor Brands misses Obama

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Data: Factset; Chart: Axios Visuals

The former Smith & Wesson has seen its stock fall badly this year, but got a reprieve on Wednesday after it released its fiscal year 2019 earnings report.

What happened: The company didn't deliver great numbers, but they weren't as bad as feared, which made the stock's 25% decline so far this year look a bit overdone.

AOBC closed fiscal 2019 with a net income of $18.4 million, or 33 cents per share, down from $20.1 million net income, or 37 cents a share, reported in fiscal 2018.

What they're saying: "Fiscal 2019 was a year that presented challenges for the firearms industry, including changes in the political environment and reduced consumer demand for firearms and for the accessories that are attached to them," said James Debney, AOBC's president and CEO.

The big picture: AOBC's stock has had a hard time since President Barack Obama left office, data provided to MarketWatch's Paul Brandus from the National Shooting Sports Foundation shows. Between 2008 and 2017:

Gun industry jobs grew 87% — but just 1.3% in 2017, Obama's first full year out of office.
Wages grew 142% — but have grown just one-third of one-percent since.

The bottom line: The "total economic impact" of the gun industry grew 169% — but has grown just 1.4% since.

Go deeper: How Corporate America is silencing the gun industry

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