Dick’s Sporting Goods apparently isn’t ready to take a definitive stand on firearm sales.
The retailer, which has been conducting a test for several months removing guns from select stores, did not announce how it plans to handle sales on a company-wide basis. Many observers expected it to do so during its call with analysts following Thursday’s second quarter earnings release.
Edward W. Stack, chairman and chief executive officer at Dick’s, noted “continued deterioration in hunt and firearms business,” but did not announce an expansion of the ongoing experiment, which has seen guns removed from 125 stores to date.
“We have this under review and as soon as we decide what we’re going to do, we’ll let you know,” said Slack. (In its earnings release, Dick’s said “the company is continuing the strategic review of its hunt business, including Field & Stream.”)
Dick’s has been reconsidering its firearm sales since early 2018, after the high school shooting in Parkland, Fla. After that incident, the company ceased sales of assault rifles like the AR-15 and raised its minimum age to buy a guy to 21. It destroyed the weapons instead of selling them to a competitor, prompting the National Rifle Association to lash out at the company.
The retailer announced a 3.2% increase in same store sales overall in the second quarter and raised its full year guidance.
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