The Financial Post reports in its Thursday edition a lot of gun enthusiasts in the United States rushed to buy assault rifles following the December, 2012, shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., thinking they were about to be banned, but the tragedy also caused some high-profile pension funds to pull their money from the companies. The Post's Claire Brownell writes one result is that sales have since dropped off. That is bad news for gun makers such as Smith & Wesson and its shareholders, including the Royal Bank of Canada and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. Smith & Wesson's shares plunged $1.78 to close at $11.31 (U.S.) Wednesday after it cut its revenue and earnings forecasts for the year. One lasting effect of Sandy Hook was to turn some investors off the sector completely. The California State Teachers' Retirement System, known as Calstrs, will not invest in firearms makers. Smith & Wesson still counts some big Canadian names among its investors. RBC is the company's fourth-largest shareholder with a 4.58-per-cent interest; CPPIB holds 0.11 per cent. A spokesman for RBC declined to comment, while CPPIB says it holds Smith & Wesson in its passive portfolio.