Stock prices for firearm companies rose this week after a gunman killed dozens of people in Las Vegas, an apparent continuation of a morbid trend linked to mass shootings.
But investors were more muted than they had been in recent years, a sign of Wall Street’s increasing skepticism about how much influence mass shootings can exert on gun control legislation, especially in a Trump administration.
Although the 2016 presidential election eased concerns among gun advocates about tighter rules, gun companies have struggled since the vote, with falling sales and excess inventory.
The shooting on Sunday was the deadliest in modern American history, with at least 59 people dead and more than 520 injured. The tragedy drew calls for gun control, as such massacres have in the past.
The prospect of tighter gun rules often leads consumers to stockpile firearms. Wall Street, sensing a sales upswing, piles into gun manufacturer and retailer stocks.
This time, however, its reaction seemed more tepid than it was after previous major shootings.
