Posted on 11/16/2020 8:16:00 AM PST by rktman
Vista Outdoors, the parent company of ammunition brands Federal, CCI, Blazer, and Speer (among others), announced during an earnings call last week a yearlong backlog of ammunition orders worth $1 billion.
“We currently have over a year’s worth of orders for ammunition in excess of $1 billion,” CEO Chis Metz said during the Nov. 5 call, calling the backlog “unprecedented.”
“With demand far outstripping supply and inventory levels in the channel at all-time lows, we see strong demand continuing, and this metric informs our viewpoint of what a recovery or normalization could look like,” he continued.
He added that he was providing the additional context “to convey an underlying strength and strong foundational element to our business.”
All ammunition manufacturers are feeling the squeeze of a massive spike in demand driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, social unrest, and the presidential election.
Arizona-based Ammo Incorporated reported in October that the relatively small company is facing an $80 million backlog despite operating 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Company CEO Fred Wagenhals named COVID, the election, and unrest as the drivers of the spike in demand in an interview with AZFamily.com.
(Excerpt) Read more at gunsamerica.com ...
Been hearing for months that all the ammo manufacturers are running 24x7.
Yet all the stores have been empty for months.
Where is it all going?
Is it really selling so fast that nobody even gets to see it hit the shelves?
Is that a wanted poster for two Chinese Spies?
They have shifted their suppliers into providing 20 round boxes instead of 200 or 150 or even 50 for .556. The stock last longer but if you are not close it is really not worth your while.
9mm seems to be the one hardest to obtain. We have people camping out at 5:00 am there. Seems to be headed toward just 50 round boxes for 9mm.
Gold or Ammo?
[[[So does that mean the backlog increased? I had planned on doing an inventory this week.]]]
It means yet another major ammo outfit falls under the control of a single company. Vista now has Federal, Estate, Speer, CCI, Remington, etc. under its roof.
Fiocchi I believe is the only company actually building a new ammo plant in this country.
RIO closed down their new shotgun ammo plant in Texas during the glut. Hopefully they can fire that back up. Its being used for warehousing now.
This thing is going to last for years.
P!enty of ammo out there online
www.ammoseek.com
But you will pay, the salad days of cheap ammo are gone
A 20 rd box of 30-30? $99.99
LOLOLOLOL
Try back in 8 years, if any gun industries are still standing
[[[Just bought 5.56 at my local Academy sports this morning....wasn’t cheap and limit was 3 20 rd. Boxes but they have it. Since there is a limit I sent my wife in to buy 3 more boxes.
20 rd. Box was $9.95 + tax]]]
Good price actually. I’ve seen it at 1 buck a round and 9mm at 80 cents a round. Insane.
The inventory will tell you how much you can practice. I actually got one of those “laser” practice cartridges last year. I was able to “go to the range” in my garage last year.
While it wasn’t the best practice, it cost me nothing and I built muscle memory.
We had a four foot high pallet of 1000 round cases of 5.56 mm last week, it was gone by 11:30 a.m.
I’ve been looking all over for some silver bullets just in case this new vaccine turn people into werewolves. Can’t find it anywhere.
That is cheap these days. Go back in and buy more!
Funny how 2020 has made the prepared not so crazy after all.
“That is cheap these days. Go back in and buy more!”
Only 3 boxes a day.
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Where at? How much?
Many places put it out randomly which makes it tough if you live far away. I guess one needs to buy a clerk a gift card.
Wait you got a billion dollars of order on the line and you haven’t built another factory or 2? Dude, that’s just not good business.
Oh, I can answer this one!
Production management is based on their projections. If you are going to sell 1000 rounds in december you plan your “lines” and staffing to make 1,000 rounds.
If gun sales are through the roof, my gun store will also sell you a couple of boxes of ammo to practice with. They also sell it at their range. More practice, more ammo.
So, the 1,000 rounds projected all of a sudden grows to 1,400 rounds. This is when they will increase the overtime at the plant.
Now, the experience shooter and someone who practices often will see the shortage and they will buy an “extra” box or two, just because they want to go to the range next week.
The production need of 1,400 just became 1,600. This is when the backlog really starts.
This is also when hoarding starts. So the production of 1,600 is not 2,000.
The production line will go to full 24x7. (probably more than 22 x 6 because you need to do maintenance and what not.)
The problem is the infrastructure is NOT going to be expanded.
Lets say that the “line” to produce ammo cost $1 mm. Is the company going to order and build that line for an additional million dollars, add and train staff, and expand their facility? If there is the slightest chance of dramatic regs coming down the pike, there is not a finance guy in the world that would approve that kind of expenditure.
In contrast, if the Senate stays red, and there are no draconian rules passed, the desire for ammo stockpiles dwindle. The lines catch up, and slow down. The finance guy looks like a hero and everyone is happy.
Except the guy who doesn’t have his ammo for his 22Lr, or 308 win for deer season.
Using Ammo production as an example would have made my production management classes much more real.
On top of all of this, I have no idea how many of these resources (brass, lead, chemicals, primers, etc) are imported. COVID would certainly have impacted that stuff.
What does it cost to build a new plant? Hire staff? Import resources?
And how long does it take?
Or you could simply max out your current facility. And ride out the storm. Your margins stay the same and you blow out your numbers without increasing your expenses and “capital” costs.
Show me a 10 year projection on gun sales and ammo use that supports the building of a new facility and I am sure they would do it.
Finance guys are like a wife in charge of the check book.
We were selling them for $499.99, they disappeared in 2 1/2 hours.
I work at a good sized gun store in VA.
We are still getting ammo in but it is sporadic.
LOL! Guess I “need” to hang on to my “cheap” ammo now?
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