Smith & Wesson shares rise on robust handgun sales

Stock Market Predictions

BANGALORE (Global Markets) - Shares of Smith & Wesson Holding Corp (SWHC.O) rose as much as 13 percent on Friday, a day after the gun maker forecast strong annual sales on a robust backlog, driven by increased demand for small arms designed for personal protection.

The company is benefiting from the redesign and launch of small handguns that are easier to conceal and carry.

"It appears that the consumer trend toward smaller handguns is growing, and (Smith & Wesson's) newer, smaller products are seeing particular sales strength," Northland Capital Markets analyst Chris Krueger wrote in a note.

The company's pistol sales grew about 30 percent in the quarter. Its firearms backlog rose 153 percent to $186.7 million, sequentially.

Krueger said the backlog has returned to the levels seen post the election of U.S. President Barrack Obama, when gun sales surged on fears of new regulation.

For the year ending April 2012, the company forecast net sales of $420-$440 million.

Analysts, on average, were expecting sales of $413.71 million for the period, according to Thomson Global Markets I/B/E/S.

Fourth quarter adjusted earnings stood at 15 cents, ahead of Wall Street projections of a 4 cent profit.

Shares of the Springfield, Massachusetts-based company were trading up more than 10 percent at $3.31 on Friday afternoon on Nasdaq. They touched a high of $3.40, earlier in the session.

(Reporting by Meenakshi Iyer and Arpita Mukherjee in Bangalore; Editing by Joyjeet Das)