No 4Q dividend for Ruger

Sturm, Ruger & Company Inc. will not issue a quarterly dividend on its common stock in the fourth quarter of 2005, the company announced Oct. 20.

Company Chairman William B. Ruger Jr. said the company’s earnings “do not support a fourth-quarter dividend,” adding that “Under these circumstances, we felt it fiscally prudent to temporarily suspend the dividend.”

The company had earlier reported a net loss for the quarter ended Sept. 30, of $1 million, or 4 cents a share, compared to a break-even result in the comparable quarter of 2004.

For the nine months ended Sept. 30, net sales were $113.7 million and net income was $2.7 million, or 10 cents per share. For the corresponding period in 2004, net sales were $108.3 million and net income was $3.4 million or $0.13 per share.

According to Ruger, firearm sales were flat for the quarter, but remain 4 percent ahead of last year for the nine months ended Sept. 30.
He said the sales of the new family of Ruger Mark III pistols and the Ruger P345 centerfire pistols were in high demand, along with the new family of Ruger Vaqueros, the 50th Anniversary Ruger Blackhawk, the new family of Ruger Ranch Rifles and the Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan. – NHBR STAFF REPORT