Dick's Sporting Goods is selling 8 of its hunting-centric Field & Stream stores, and it could signal a shift in the company's gun strategy
- Dick's Sporting Goods is selling eight of the 35 locations of its Field & Stream brand, which focuses on hunting and fishing.
- The sale comes as Dick's is conducting a strategic review of its hunting business, with UBS analyst Michael Lasser saying that the company is expected to announce news on the topic "shortly."
- The retailer has stopped selling guns at 135 Dick's Sporting Goods locations as hunting sales slump.
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Dick's Sporting Goods' review of its hunting business is starting to produce results.
On Monday, Sportsman's Warehouse Holdings announced that it had entered into an agreement with Dick's to acquire eight Field & Stream locations in Pennsylvania, New York, North Carolina, and Michigan.
Field & Stream is Dick's hunting and fishing brand. There are currently 35 locations across the US; eight will become Sportsman's Warehouse Holdings stores after the transaction closes, which should happen in mid-October. Earlier this year, the company noted that it did not plan to open any new Field & Stream stores.
Dick's CEO Ed Stack said in a March earnings call that the company was "not sure exactly what we're gonna do" with the Field & Stream brand. UBS analyst Michael Lasser wrote in a note on Friday that the company "is contemplating whether to run it in its current state or convert the space to a different concept. It could also sell the chain altogether."
Dick's is currently conducting a strategic review of its hunting business as a whole. Lasser wrote in the note that the company should have news on the review "shortly."
Dick's did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
Dick's announced in March that it was expanding its program ending the sale of guns and hunting equipment from 10 locations to more than 125. In August, Stack told investors that the 10 stores in the first test generated their third consecutive quarter of comparable positive sales, outperforming the chain as a whole.
Read more: Dick's Sporting Goods will stop selling guns in 100 more stores after a successful 10-store test
"The hunt business continues to be soft - continues to be soft not just for us, but for the category as a whole," Stack said.
Dick's began to reexamine its gun policies in the aftermath of the 2018 Parkland shooting, which left 17 dead. Stack announced in February 2018 that Dick's would no longer sell assault-style rifles or high-capacity magazines, nor would it sell any firearm to anyone under the age of 21.