In wake of Dallas cop murders, stock price of of gun, body cam companies jump

Body cam manufacturer Digital Ally surges more than 50 percent.

David Kravets

Peretz Partensky

UPDATE: This post was updated after trading ended to reflect closing prices.
ORIGINAL Story:
Shares of companies producing firearms, body cams, and stun guns jumped significantly Friday in the wake of the murders of five Dallas law enforcement officers. The officers were killed during a Thursday night protest of police-officer involved shootings of civilians.
Shares of gunmakers often spike in the aftermath of high-profile shootings for several reasons, including the public's desire to enhance personal security and to beat possible gun-control measures that are always discussed in a tragedy's wake. Stocks in that sector spiked after the Orlando, Florida shootings last month. On the body cam front, financials in that sector also rocket after major police events as the market suspects more police departments will deploy the technology.

Firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson (SWHC) spiked 2.76 percent to close at $29.07. The company ended up shy of its 52-week high of $30.44 on the Nasdaq. Its 52-week low was $14.71. Sturm, Ruger & Co. (RGR) surged nearly 5 percent to close at $67.65—a distance from its $78.09 52-week high and $48.10 low on the New York Stock Exchange.

Shares of TASER International (TASR), the maker of body cams and the stun-gun Taser, moved higher by nearly 6 percent. Its stock on the Nasdaq ended the day at $27.30 a share, well above the 52-week low of $13.56 and below the $34.91, 52-week high. Body cam manufacturer Digital Ally (DGLY) saw some of the biggest gains on the Nasdaq. Its shares skyrocketed 62 percent, closing at $6.69 a share. Its 52-week high is $13.55, while its low is $4.91.

On Thursday night, five Dallas police officers were killed and seven others were injured during a protest of two black men killed by police recently in Minnesota and Louisiana.
Dallas Police Chief David Brown said "snipers" were to blame. Officials said three suspects were in custody and a fourth was killed by a robot-delivered bomb. However, it was not immediately clear how many shooters were involved. One suspect told the authorities, according to Chief Brown, that he was enraged over the recent officer-involved shootings of civilians and wanted to kill "white officers." Brown said that the suspect told authorities that he acted alone.

This post originated on Ars Technica