Smith & Wesson announced today that it has acquired Savage Arms from JDH Holdings in a $160 million stock-and-cash transaction.
The move brings the 132-year-old Massachusetts-based Savage Arms, known best for its accurate and innovative rifles and shotguns, squarely under the umbrella of the even more senior 174-year-old S&W. For its part, Smith & Wesson already has a healthy catalog of modern pistols, revolvers, lever guns, suppressors, and modern sporting rifles.
Smith & Wesson stated the acquisition “creates a compelling platform to generate sustainable, long-term growth” in its press release announcing the move.
“The acquisition of Savage is transformative for Smith & Wesson and contributes to our objective of becoming the undisputed market leader in the firearm industry,” said Mark Smith, president and CEO of Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. “With this transaction, we have significantly expanded our presence in the hunting category, particularly in bolt-action rifles, which will enable us to better serve our customers.”
Okay, I guess. I like the idea of S&W and Savage under the same roof, so to speak, because by and large they don’t have much overlap in general terms. To simplify the thing: Smith doesn’t make precision rifles, and Savage doesn’t make revolvers, so that should work out okay.
The problem I have with this (and the Beretta/Ruger merger) is that it simplifies the market, and not necessarily for the better. Now, instead of four large gun companies, we have two giant ones — and in principle, I don’t like oligarchies; I like competition to come from all over the place.
I’m reserving judgment on this merger — and feel free to tell me if I’ve completely missed the point — but I have to say, I have a bad feeling in my gut about it.