Cerberus Capital Management Buying Gun Companies

[ELB]

I had read about this awhile back, and was in fact concerned that something fishy was going on. The I ran across this post at Say Uncle. I have not checked any of the facts related in this post, but assuming SayUncle's not completely off-base, I feel a bit better. At least this guy is not George Soros. (Do hate to see so many eggs in one basket, tho).

Gun Company Buys
Posted by: SayUncle
There’s been a lot of chatter on the internets about Cerberus Capital Management buying up firearms manufacturers. Cerberus various investments generate about $60B (with a b) in revenue according to their website. And they own Chrysler. That’s just to give you an idea of how big they are. They’ve recently acquired DPMS, Bushmaster, and Remington. I guess they have a thing for black rifles (who doesn’t? -ed). This, of course, led a lot of the paranoid gunny types to ponder why they were doing this, including speculation that they had nefarious intent. Guns are a good investment. S&W posted record profits repeatedly for years (that recently changed but it’s not a major loss). And my people in the gun biz are telling me that guns are selling like mad now (elections, mass shootings, something in the water, etc.). Also, an unprecedented level of protection against frivolous lawsuits has been afforded to gun makers via the Protection of Lawful Commerce In Arms Act. Guns are good business.

So, who are these guys? Well, take off your tinfoil beanies. One of the managing directors for Cerberus is George K. Kollitides and he is running for Board of Directors for the National Rifle Association. Here’s one bio:

Nominated by the NRA Nominating Committee, Kollitides has spent his adult life supporting the Second Amendment. A Benefactor member, he became an NRA Life member as a young man. He serves on the Boards of Remington and Bushmaster. He is an avid shooter and hunter, and is a Life member of TSRA, CRPA, NYSRPA, ATA, Boone and Crockett (Associate), Houston Safari Club, NMLRA and Quail Unlimited.

Kollitides is a member of Remington Collectors, SAFE, NWTF, and the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance. As a Managing Director of Cerberus Capital Management, he oversees the firm’s interests in the firearms industry. He has managed numerous financial transactions and is a noted financial forum speaker. Kollitides has shot since childhood and enjoys hunting with family and friends.

His wife and children are NRA Life members. As a staunch defender of Second Amendment freedoms, he is honored to be nominated for the NRA Board.

And, obviously, Bushmaster and Remington are giving him the nod and have bios on him as well.

[longtooth]

Sure could be a help to gun owners. The Big Box of firearms to help keep the cost down.

[Skiprr]

I posted a comment at his blog. We'll see if it stays. Basically, he's playing fast and loose with his statements about Smith & Wesson as an example of how good the gun manufacturing business is right now. The market data doesn't support that. As someone who has a few shares of S&W stock, I sorta took umbrage at the notion a 75% drop of share price within days was "not a major loss." And Ruger took a bit of a dive last October and still is trading very close to its 52-week low.

And I promise not to bring up this previous Cerberus discussion: http://www.texasshooting.com/TexasCHL_F ... 23&t=12409.