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Investors turn against gun makers after massacre
All the talk about additional gun control appeared to be driving increased gun sales, though. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation said it received a record 4,154 requests for background checks on Saturday, the day after the shooting.
That was slightly more than on its normal biggest day, Black Friday.
Bob Irwin, CEO of The Gun Store in Las Vegas, said customer traffic has jumped since the school shooting, with many customers concerned that more gun laws will be enacted. He has not pulled any guns from the shelf.
‘‘My belief is the individual nutcase did this,’’ he said. ‘‘The company that manufactured the gun didn't. That seems silly to deprive my normal customers of product because somebody misused a product from the same company.’’
Irwin agreed that the Connecticut attack demanded some kind of action. He suggested adding more security officers at schools.
Shares in publicly traded gun makers declined for a third-straight day.
Shares of Sturm, Ruger & Co. dropped 7.7 percent to close at $40.60. They have fallen almost 11 percent since Thursday, the day before the shooting. Shares of Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. fell 10 percent to $7.79 — down almost 15 percent from their Thursday close.
Outdoor goods retailer Cabela’s Inc. fell almost 6 percent to close at $38.77.
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Associated Press writers Michelle Chapman and Jonathan Fahey in New York, Sandy Shore in Denver, and Judy Lin in Sacramento, Calif. contributed to this report.![]()