Gun stocks are going nuts right now (SWHC, RGR)

REUTERS/Regis Duvignau

Shares of America's leading gunmakers were notably higher for a second day on Monday.

In late-morning trading:

• Smith & Wesson shares were up about 5%. Year-to-date, they've rallied 110%.
• Sturm, Ruger & Company shares were up 4% in morning trade. Year-to-date, they're up 64%. 

Meanwhile, the broader stock market was lower, with the Dow and the benchmark S&P 500 losing about 1% following a surge in trading on Friday.

Last Wednesday, a couple shot and killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California, in what the FBI is investigating as an act of terrorism. 

In a primetime address on Sunday night, President Obama, reacting to Wednesday's shooting and the broader terrorism threat, said the US should make it harder for possible mass shooters to gain access to guns.

And on Monday, the US Supreme Court made its first ruling on a gun-rights case since 2010, according to Bloomberg. It declined to hear a challenge to a federal appeals court decision that banned residents of a Chicago suburb from having semi-automatic assault weapons and large-capacity magazines.

As we've noted before, any indication that guns may be harder to buy in the future makes it more attractive to get guns right now. 

So there you go.

Here's a chart showing the rally in the gunmakers' shares over the past four days:REUTERS/Regis Duvignau

And here's a year-to-date chart:REUTERS/Regis Duvignau

NOW WATCH: The number of times Obama has had to respond to mass shootings during his presidency is staggering