The “winners” of Trump’s rise were in the spotlight long before the Republican won the White House. The financial sector, the oil companies, Tesla… Rivers of ink have been spilled over who would benefit from the American shift towards aggressive tariffs and tax cuts. However, the biggest winner of all went unnoticed in recent days until his latest financial results finally stopped his “rally” from going unnoticed.
Axon (formerly Taser International), the security giant known for being the originator of the famous weapon used by law enforcement to paralyze criminals with an electric shock, has entered the Olympus of Wall Street. So far this year the group has already climbed 153% with a breakthrough that really began in August, when Trump’s options became more real than ever, but which experienced a real “boom” in November, with the victory. Since then, the company’s shares have gained 45%.
But why has a company known for its “electroshock” weapons become the fourth best stock in the S&P 500, behind Vistra, Palantir and Nvidia? The answer is a combination of Trump’s immigration policy…and artificial intelligence. Almost like a perfect storm, the two factors came together to send “Taser” to all-time highs of $636 per share, or about $48.5 billion. But to understand why The Taser dances to the rhythm of Trump and AI We must understand the company’s situation and why it is facing a real turning point to become one of the great pillars of the security profession.
To understand the growth of the company, you need to understand its flagship product and what gives it its name. In 1969, almost as man landed on the moon, NASA wanted to develop a weapon to control suspects, but it was safe and a viable alternative to guns. In 1974, Jack Cover, a researcher at the aerospace agency, completed the Tom Swift electric rifle, whose acronym, TSER, will go down in history.
The company created to market this new gadget went bankrupt in the 1980s due to commercial failure, but, with a new redesign and complete restructuring of the brand, it returned to the ring and launched itself into the Nasdaq 100 in 2001. After a brief period of success, the company knew that the product that gave it its name would not allow it to reach its full potential, so it shifted its focus to body cameras. Axonal cameras They have become its flagship product.
At first, the cameras were linked to Tasers. At that time, the company declared: “we are not just an arms company, our business is to ensure transparency and resolve problems data for police forces.” Taser cameras have been integrated with security officers across the country in the event of complaints against them or legal issues arising from their activity. In addition to the cameras themselves, the company markets a software linked to it and which is sold monthly payment program.
Trump and security
This new “star” business is one of the bases on which its powerful stock market awakening was built. Axon’s body cameras are one of the most requested products under Trump’s immigration laws. As the AFSC points out in its latest report “US immigration authorities they use the company’s cameras and software who accompanies them to monitor the immigrants. In June 2024, for example, CBP awarded Axon a contract worth a potential $7.7 million for its Incident Video Recording System (IDVRS) body cameras.
This led experts to speculate that a period of great growth was approaching for the company’s products. Security products which were already coming out of a successful and profitable third quarter growth of 42% and sales of 32%to the tune of 544 million euros. The company now expects to bill more than $2.07 billion for all of 2024, according to its latest outlook.
Northcoast Research explained in a note on the company following its results that it would be one of the big winners of the Trump era. “Law enforcement should be well funded if Trump wins the election,” which would “benefit from these actions” – This is the sentiment that has pervaded all analysts because, as Bloomberg forecasts indicate, Taser International (or Axon Group), even if it starts charging 2.08 billion this year compared to 1.56 billion From 2023, it will add an additional 500 million each year, reaching 3 billion in 2026. For its part, adjusted net profit will increase from only 312 million to 630 million over this period, in the heat of Donald Trump’s presidency. .
An anti-bureaucracy AI for the police
But it’s not just the increased demand for cameras and “shock guns.” The company has taken a new step by entering the artificial intelligence revolution, particularly in the security sector. The company developed a product known as Draft One. This new product, which is already starting to be marketed, consists of software which, thanks to the videos collected by the police with Axon cameras, automatically draws up the police report.
These reports would be preliminary and the police would be responsible for reviewing them, but the company defends that this system would allow critical streamlining time for “paperwork” so that the police can be more effective. According to their statistics, time spent writing reports decreased by 75% at the Rowlett Police Department, where they tested this assistant. “We want to use AI to make public safety faster, smarter and more effective,” the company explained.
During the round of questions with analysts, CFO Rick Smith explained that “we are still at the first stage“But we already have orders from some customers, so we are very optimistic about revenue and profitability.” give up. However, for now, it has helped him break into the Olympus of Wall Street and it seems unlikely that his path will be cut short by the rest of 2024.
