13. Income Taxes

Income tax expense consisted of the following (in thousands):

 

 

 

For the Year Ended April 30,

 

 

 

2026

 

 

2025

 

 

2024

 

Current:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Federal

 

$

 

590

 

 

$

 

6,875

 

 

$

 

6,786

 

State

 

 

 

86

 

 

 

 

1,977

 

 

 

 

2,713

 

Total current

 

 

 

676

 

 

 

 

8,852

 

 

 

 

9,499

 

Deferred:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Federal

 

 

 

5,866

 

 

 

 

(2,638

)

 

 

 

2,558

 

State

 

 

 

47

 

 

 

 

(394

)

 

 

 

(1,701

)

Total deferred

 

 

 

5,913

 

 

 

 

(3,032

)

 

 

 

857

 

Total income tax expense

 

$

 

6,589

 

 

$

 

5,820

 

 

$

 

10,356

 

 

The effective income tax rate for the year ended April 30, 2026 differs from the statutory federal income tax rate as follows:

 

 

 

For the Year Ended April 30, 2026

 

 

 

$

 

 

%

 

U.S. Federal Statutory Tax Rate

 

$

 

5,265

 

 

 

 

21.0

%

State income taxes, net of federal tax effects (a)

 

 

 

189

 

 

 

 

0.8

%

Effect of cross-border tax laws

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Foreign derived intangible income (FDII) deductions

 

 

 

(24

)

 

 

 

-0.1

%

Tax credits

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research & development and fuel

 

 

 

(312

)

 

 

 

-1.2

%

Nontaxable or nondeductible items

 

 

 

441

 

 

 

 

1.8

%

Other adjustments

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deferral adjustment for stock compensation

 

 

 

988

 

 

 

 

3.8

%

Other

 

 

 

42

 

 

 

 

0.2

%

Total income tax expense

 

$

 

6,589

 

 

 

 

26.3

%

 

(a)
State taxes in California, Louisiana, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Texas make up the majority (greater than 50%) of the tax effect in this category.

Prior to the adoption of ASU 2023-09, the following table presents a reconciliation of income tax expense from continuing operations at the statutory rate of 21% to the expense in the consolidated financial statements (in thousands):

 

 

 

For the Year Ended April 30,

 

 

 

2025

 

 

2024

 

Federal income taxes expected at the statutory rate

 

$

 

4,041

 

 

$

 

10,861

 

State income taxes, net of federal tax effects

 

 

 

1,406

 

 

 

 

(144

)

Stock compensation

 

 

 

386

 

 

 

 

467

 

Business meals and entertainment

 

 

 

113

 

 

 

 

100

 

Research and development tax credit

 

 

 

(335

)

 

 

 

(281

)

Amendments to prior year returns

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(1,176

)

Other

 

 

 

209

 

 

 

 

529

 

Total income tax expense

 

$

 

5,820

 

 

$

 

10,356

 

 

Deferred tax assets and liabilities related to temporary differences consisted of the following (in thousands):

 

 

 

For the Years Ended April 30,

 

 

 

2026

 

 

2025

 

Deferred Tax Assets

 

 

 

 

 

 

Inventory reserves

 

$

9,794

 

 

$

11,637

 

Accrued expenses, including compensation

 

 

3,783

 

 

 

2,930

 

Net operating loss carryforwards and tax credits

 

 

9,931

 

 

 

8,200

 

Operating lease liability

 

 

 

 

128

 

Product liability

 

 

198

 

 

 

151

 

Workers' compensation

 

 

606

 

 

 

684

 

State bonus depreciation

 

 

880

 

 

 

980

 

Warranty reserve

 

 

643

 

 

 

760

 

Stock-based compensation

 

 

562

 

 

 

1,573

 

Section 174 capitalized R&D expense

 

 

95

 

 

 

2,983

 

Other

 

 

978

 

 

 

942

 

Total deferred tax assets before valuation allowance

 

 

27,470

 

 

 

30,968

 

Valuation allowance

 

 

(7,408

)

 

 

(6,169

)

Net deferred tax assets

 

 

20,062

 

 

 

24,799

 

Deferred Tax Liabilities

 

 

 

 

 

 

Operating lease right-of-use assets

 

 

 

 

(96

)

Property, plant & equipment

 

 

(12,549

)

 

 

(11,679

)

Intangible assets

 

 

(2,803

)

 

 

(2,418

)

Other

 

 

(363

)

 

 

(346

)

Total deferred tax liabilities

 

 

(15,715

)

 

 

(14,539

)

Net Deferred Tax Asset

 

$

4,347

 

 

$

10,260

 

 

The supplemental schedule of cash paid for income taxes, net of refunds is as follows:

 

 

 

For the Year Ended
April 30, 2026

 

Cash paid during the period for income taxes:

 

 

 

 

U.S. Federal

 

$

 

3,870

 

U.S. State and local

 

 

 

 

Louisiana

 

 

 

403

 

Other

 

 

 

1,388

 

Total cash paid during the period for income taxes

 

$

 

5,661

 

 

Cash paid for income taxes, prior to the adoption of ASU 2023-09, was $7.3 million and $12.7 million for the years ended April 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively.

We had no federal net operating losses as of April 30, 2026.

We had $109.2 million and $77.3 million in state net operating loss carryforwards as of April 30, 2026 and 2025, respectively. The state net operating loss carryforwards will expire between April 30, 2027 and April 30, 2041. We had $5.5 million and $5.3 million of state tax credit carryforwards as of April 30, 2026 and 2025, respectively. Of the $5.5 million, $2.4 million can be carried forward indefinitely and $3.1 million will expire between April 30, 2027 and April 30, 2052.

As of April 30, 2026 and 2025, valuation allowances related to our deferred tax assets for state net operating loss carryforwards were $5.6 million and $4.0 million, respectively, and $1.8 million and $2.2 million were provided on our deferred tax assets for state tax credits, respectively, that we do not anticipate using prior to expiration.

The income tax provisions represent effective tax rates of 26.3% and 30.2% for fiscal 2026 and 2025, respectively.

With limited exception, we are subject to U.S. federal, state, and local income tax audits by tax authorities for fiscal years subsequent to April 30, 2019.

As of April 30, 2026 and 2025, we have not recorded any unrecognized tax benefits. We maintain an accounting policy of recording interest and penalties, if applicable, related to uncertain tax positions as a component of income taxes. As of April 30, 2026 and 2025, there were no interest and penalties accrued.

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Historical Timeline

Fiscal YearFiled
2026Jun 17, 2026Showing above
2025Jun 20, 2025
2024Jun 20, 2024
2023Jun 22, 2023
2022Jun 23, 2022
2021Jun 17, 2021
2020Jun 19, 2020
2019Jun 19, 2019
2018Jun 20, 2018
2017Jun 29, 2017
2016Jun 16, 2016

About Income Taxes Disclosures

The income tax disclosure reveals how much a company actually pays in taxes versus what the statutory rate would predict. Analysts focus on the effective tax rate (ETR) reconciliation, which breaks down every item driving the gap between the 21% federal rate and the company's reported ETR — including R&D credits, foreign rate differentials, and state taxes. Deferred tax assets (DTAs) and their valuation allowances signal management's confidence in future profitability: a rising allowance suggests the company doubts it can use accumulated tax benefits. Uncertain tax benefit (UTB) reserves quantify exposure to IRS challenges on aggressive positions.

Key signals to watch: sudden ETR drops without clear operational reasons, large increases in valuation allowances, growing UTB balances, and significant unremitted foreign earnings. Post-TCJA, pay attention to GILTI and BEAT provisions that affect multinational tax structures. Compare the cash taxes paid (from the cash flow statement) against the income tax provision to gauge earnings quality.