Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. reported sales grew 49.2 percent in the first quarter to $184.4 million from $123.6 million a year ago.

Diluted earnings reached $2.16 per share, compared with 87 cents a year ago.

The company also announced today that its Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.86 per share for the first quarter for stockholders of record as of May 17, 2021, payable on May 28, 2021. This dividend varies every quarter because the company pays a percentage of earnings rather than a fixed amount per share. This dividend is approximately 40 percent of net income.

Its CEO, Christopher J. Killoy, commented on the financial results for the first quarter of 2021, “Strengthening our workforce and realizing operational efficiencies resulted in an outstanding quarter. I could not be more proud of how well our folks rose to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and capitalized on the opportunities presented by the historic surge in demand during the past year. But we did not allow the frenetic pace of our business to distract us from our long-term goal of driving shareholder value. Our focus on our new product development initiatives remained steadfast. Consequently, in March we introduced the Ruger Max-9, a versatile 9mm pistol that has been met with tremendous excitement. We look forward to additional exciting product launches in 2021, including the return of Marlin lever-action rifles, which we plan to begin shipping in the fourth quarter.”

Killoy made the following observations related to the company’s first-quarter 2021 performance:

  • The estimated unit sell-through of the company’s products from the independent distributors to retailers increased 9 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the prior-year period. For the same period, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (“NICS”) background checks (as adjusted by the National Shooting Sports Foundation) increased 13 percent. This growth is attributable to increased consumer demand for firearms in the first quarter of 2021 and has likely been constrained due to limited available inventory in the distribution channel;
  • Sales of new products, including the Wrangler, the Ruger-57, the LCP II in .22 LR, the PC Charger, and the Max-9 pistol, represented $34.8 million or 21 percent of firearm sales in the first quarter of 2021. New product sales include only major new products that were introduced in the past two years;
  • During the first quarter of 2021, the company’s finished goods inventory and distributor inventories of the company’s products increased slightly; however, in the aggregate, total company and distributor inventories decreased 153,000 units from the end of the first quarter of 2020;
  • Cash provided by operations during the first quarter of 2021 was $27.8 million. At April 3, 2021, cash and short-term investments totaled $146.1 million. Ruger’s current ratio is 3.5 to 1 and it has no debt;
  • In the first quarter of 2021, capital expenditures totaled $5.5 million. Ruger expects 2021 capital expenditures to total approximately $20 million, most of which relate to new product introductions. In the first quarter of 2021, the company returned $12.5 million to its shareholders through the payment of dividends; and
  • At April 3, 2021, stockholders’ equity was $288.5 million, which equates to a book value of $16.41 per share, of which $8.31 per share was cash and short-term investments.

Photo courtesy Sturm, Ruger