Gun stocks to purchase in response to local governments defunding their police, allowing looting and not stopping increased shooting should benefit from a record 3,931,607 firearms background checks filed in June with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
The gun stocks to purchase also include the ammunition companies that supply the bullets for the firearms, with some investment experts preferring to profit that way during these volatile times, since the projectiles must be replenished after a weapon depletes its supply during target shooting at a firing-range. The monthly FBI background check numbers serve as a proxy for gun sales and indicate interest in owning firearms has soared to new heights since the agency began keeping those records in November 1998.
Fear Fires up Investors to Purchase Gun Stocks
Fear seems to be a huge factor. For example, the Minneapolis City Council voted on Sunday, June 7, to abolish and rebuild its police department after concluding it could not be reformed following the death of George Floyd, an African-American man who succumbed when a police officer kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes and ignored pleas from the victim that he could not breathe. On the scene were three other officers, including two rookies, who did not stop the senior policeman from continuing to constrict Floyd’s breathing.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who called the ill-fated police work of that situation flawed on every level, approved the police commissioner’s firing of all four officers involved but opposed the City Council’s vote to abolish the entire department rather than identify and fix specific problems. The City Council’s wisdom further can be questioned in light of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s May 30 call for the full mobilization of the Minnesota National Guard for the full first time in its 164-year history to quell violent civil disturbances in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul when local police became outnumbered by rioters who he estimates caused more than $500 million in damages.
Minneapolis is far from the only major city in which local officials have called for defunding police without providing studies or analysis about the impact it would have on the deployment of officers, response times to calls for service and on community and neighborhood safety. New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland, Denver and Milwaukee are other cities where moves to defund the police are occurring.
Uncontrolled Violence and Destruction Fuel Interest in Gun Ownership
Floyd’s death not only triggered protests and civil unrest in Minneapolis but in the victim’s hometown of Houston, as well as other big cities that included New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.
The Maryland National Guard, sent by Gov. Larry Hogan at the request of U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, served unarmed in the nation’s Capital to support the District of Columbia National Guard along the National Mall by standing in front of and protecting historical landmarks. They safeguarded the Lincoln Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, the Washington Monument, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, the National World War II Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
The Lincoln Memorial is safeguarded from harm by Maryland National Guard members during recent civil unrest.
In Washington, D.C., the expense of supporting local law enforcement with the National Guard of 11 states that supplemented D.C. National Guard members reached $21.1 million, as of June 12, without including any Air National Guard aircraft that were used to transport service members. The 10 states other than Maryland that supplied guardsmen to assist with peacekeeping in the District of Columbia were Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Missouri, Mississippi, New Jersey, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee and Utah.
Members of the Maryland National Guard members protect the World War II Memorial from any damage.
The call to service for the Maryland National Guard came after protesters descended on federal park land and unlawfully pulled down a statue of Albert Pike, broke it and set it ablaze, defying the plan of D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, who had introduced a U.S. House Resolution calling for its preservation, removal and possible placement in a museum. No damage occurred to any statues, monuments or memorials during the multi-day service of the 120 Maryland National Guard’s citizen-soldiers. The federal government will pay the $120,000 expense for the Maryland National Guard’s protection, June 3-7.
Presence through the Darkness: Maryland citizen-soldiers stand watch
The statute of Pike, a now-deceased leader of the Free Masons in Washington, D.C., shows him wearing civilian clothes, but he also served in the Confederate Army as an officer during the Civil War. That latter role sparked recent interest in removing the statue from public land, along with one in Richmond, Virginia, of Gen. Robert E Lee, as well as others depicting former Confederate Army leaders. A review board in Richmond agreed to a plan to lower the 13-ton monument of Lee to the ground by a crane,to cut the artwork into three pieces and to reassemble it elsewhere, since the statue otherwise is too tall to go under any bridges.
Unlawful Removal and Damage of Statues Includes Religious Figures and Sites
Certain protests have turned violent and destructive, with attacks on police, law-abiding citizens and religious figures and sites, $500 million-plus of property damage in Minnesota alone, looting, shooting and senseless murders. Many protesters also jeopardized their health amid the COVID-19 pandemic by failing to social distance and wear protective masks, as recommended by public health experts to avoid spread of the infection.
“The looting in many American cities has reminded everyone that the police cannot be everywhere at all times,” said Jim Woods, who leads the Successful Investing, Intelligence Report and Bullseye Stock Trader advisory services. “That means it is incumbent upon the citizen to provide for his or her own protection — and that means responsible gun ownership.”
Woods told me he prefers small-cap ammunition maker AMMO, Inc. (POWW) as his top recommendation among gun stocks to purchase. Shares in POWW have risen nearly 200% so far this year, he added.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
“The company’s patented, non-incendiary illuminating rounds have become a favorite of law enforcement, the military and gun enthusiasts,” Woods said.
Jim Woods tests AMMO, Inc.’s Streak non-incendiary visual ammunition near the company’s headquarters in Scottsdale, Arizona
Interest in buying gun stocks began to grow in March after governors around the country imposed restrictions as the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths began to spread alarmingly along with social unrest. The gun stocks to purchase stand out for their potential in an industry that has taken on increased importance as tensions rose amid lockdowns, business closings and rioting that sometimes accompanied protests for racial equality.
Baltimore Native Is One of Many Women Buying Guns for Personal Safety
My former colleague, Baltimore native Emily Miller, became a gun owner years ago after money was stolen from her purse during a home invasion in Washington, D.C. She later overcame what she described as daunting gun registration obstacles in the District of Columbia to finally gain ownership of a firearm to protect herself.
A cum laude graduate from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service who served as a spokeswoman for former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Miller described her ordeal as a crime victim, fear of what may happen next and decision to learn how to use and buy a gun in her book, “Emily Gets Her Gun.” Miller, petite, athletic and strong-willed, chose to learn how to defend herself, and she is far from alone with violence increasingly raging in America’s largest cities.
One female friend told me seven other women recently joined her at a gun range to learn how to shoot firearms. Each of the women took and passed a test to gain eligibility to apply to purchase guns, even though none had prior experience with such weapons.
Smith & Wesson Brands Is 1 of the 4 Gun Stocks to Purchase
Bryan Perry, who leads the Cash Machine, Premium Income, Quick Income Trader, Hi-Tech Trader and Breakout Profits Alert advisory services, told me he likes Smith & Wesson Brands Inc. (NASDAQ:SWBI), a Springfield, Massachusetts-based manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, along with Sturm Ruger & Co. (NYSE:RGR), a Southport, Connecticut, a provider of guns for hunting, target practice and home protection.
Smith & Wesson announced on June 1 that it will split from American Outdoor Brands, Inc., creating a firearms business and a separate outdoor products and accessories provider. The spin-off of the outdoor products and accessories business will occur as a tax-free stock distribution to its stockholders in late summer 2020, with the formation of two independent publicly traded companies: Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc., and American Outdoor Brands, Inc.
“We believe that separating into two independent public companies will allow each organization to better align its strategic objectives with its capital allocation priorities,” said Chairman Barry M. Monheit, in a statement. “We also believe that this action will give the investment community clearer insight into the value creation potential in each of these independent companies, ultimately driving enhanced stockholder value.”
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
Sturm Ruger & Co. Makes List of 4 Gun Stocks to Purchase
Sturm Ruger & Co., a firearm manufacturing company, produced quarterly results in May that topped analysts’ estimates as revenue grew more than 8% on a year-over-year basis to reach $123.6 million, while earnings per share gained nearly 18%. The stock also offers a 1.02% dividend yield.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
Paul Dykewicz interviews Bryan Perry at the MoneyShow in Orlando, Florida.
Another Sharpshooting Company Earns Spot Among 4 Gun Stocks to Purchase
“Gun stocks can be tricky because people tend to stockpile weapons ahead of a perceived threat to regulate or restrict ownership,” said Hilary Kramer, host of a national radio program called “Millionaire Maker.”
Columnist and author Paul Dykewicz interviews money manager Hilary Kramer, whose premium advisory services included 2-Day Trader, IPO Edge, Turbo Trader,High Octane Trader and Inner Circle.
As a result, traditional gun stocks perform best in the market when lobbying efforts to control weapons are most vocal, continued Kramer, who leads the Value Authority and GameChangers advisory services. Gun sales tend to slow when such efforts and threats to America’s Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms fade, she added.
Olin Corp. Ranks Among the 4 Gun Stocks to Purchase
Kramer said her favorite gun stock is Olin Corp. (NYSE:OLN), which pays a 7.5% dividend yield and has been making Winchester cartridges since 1931. As a result, even if the stock goes nowhere, which she said was unlikely, investors should be rewarded for their patience.
Chart courtesy of www.StockCharts.com
“OLN hasn’t cut its dividend or missed a payment in a quarter century,” Kramer said. “I see no reason for that to happen here.”
Bob Carlson, leader of the Retirement Watch advisory service and chairman of the Board of Trustees of Virginia’s Fairfax County Employees’ Retirement System with more than $4 billion in assets, said a problem with buying gun and ammunition stocks is that they are more prone to boom-and-bust cycles than other equities.
“Going back to early in the Obama administration, the industry had periods when sales exceeded demand because of worries that strong gun control regulation would be enacted,” Carlson said.
Pension fund Chairman Bob Carlson answers questions from Paul Dykewicz during an interview before social distancing became the norm after the outbreak of COVID-19.
COVID-19 Creates Further Havoc as Interest Grows in Gun Ownership
The Forecasts & Strategies investment newsletter of Mark Skousen, PhD, also follows gun stocks but has no current recommendations.He likes to find bargain valuations or growth stocks that are just starting to take off, as well as dividend-paying investments.
Mark Skousen, a descendant of Benjamin Franklin, meets with Paul Dykewicz in Philadelphia. Skousen’s premium investment services consist of Home Run Trader, Five Star Trader, TNT Trader and Fast Money Alert.
The fallout of COVID-19 has led to 13,734,518 cases and 588,149 deaths globally, along with 3,559,899 cases and 138,185 lives lost in the United States, as of July 16. America has more than double as many cases and deaths of any other nation, including China, where COVID-19 originated.
In addition, a one-day spike in cases recently occurred in Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Tennessee and Utah, following recent public protests, reopening of businesses and resumption of activities in which many people passed up using protective masks and failed to social distance, as advised by public health officials. In Florida, at least 56 intensive care units at hospitals had hit capacity on June 7 and another 35 ICUs had less than 10% of their capacity left, according to the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration.
These gun stocks to purchase give investors a chance to profit amid the civil unrest that has gripped the country in recent months. As so-called non-essential businesses begin to recall many workers who were laid off during the recent lockdowns, investors who purchase their favorites among these four gun stocks may be able to provide their portfolios with a boost in the face of the current turbulent times.
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Paul Dykewicz, www.pauldykewicz.com, is an accomplished, award-winning journalist who has written for Dow Jones, the Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, USA Today, the Journal of Commerce,Seeking Alpha, GuruFocus and other publications and websites. Paul, who can be followed on Twitter @PaulDykewicz, is the editor of StockInvestor.com and DividendInvestor.com, a writer for both websites and a columnist. He further is editorial director of Eagle Financial Publications in Washington, D.C., where he edits monthly investment newsletters, time-sensitive trading alerts, free e-letters and other investment reports. Paul previously served as business editor of Baltimore’s Daily Record newspaper. Paul also is the author of an inspirational book, “Holy Smokes! Golden Guidance from Notre Dame’s Championship Chaplain,” with a foreword by former national championship-winning football coach Lou Holtz. The book is endorsed by Joe Montana, Joe Theismann, Ara Paseghian, “Rocket” Ismail, Reggie Brooks, Dick Vitale and many others.
