Gun sales a drag for Sportsman's Warehouse

Weaker-than-expected demand for guns led to a decrease in same store sales for Sportsman’s Warehouse in the fourth quarter.

The Midvale, Utah-based company’s same store sales declined 5.3% for the quarter ended Jan. 31. Hunting and shooting make up roughly half of Sportsman's Warehouse's sales.

The retailer had net income of $3.2 million, or 8 cents per share, compared to $7.4 million, or 22 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Income from operations dropped to $14.1 million in the latest quarter, versus $16.4 million in the year-ago quarter.

CEO John Schaefer said, "We are very pleased with our performance in fiscal 2014, as we grew our store base by 17% with the addition of eight new stores, increased sales by 2.6% and met each of our financial performance objectives despite heightened competition in some of our larger markets and continued industry headwinds that impacted the firearms and ammunition categories,” Schaefer said. “As we begin fiscal 2015, we remain focused on our strategic initiatives and continue to see abundant white space and significant share opportunity to be captured within the outdoor sporting goods market. We believe we are well positioned to capitalize on this opportunity given our distinguishing attributes of high service levels, everyday value and local shopping convenience."

For the first quarter of fiscal 2015, the company expects net loss of 4 to 3 cents per share, on net sales of $140 million to $145 million.

Sportsman's Warehouse ended the quarter with 55 stores in 18 states.