Holding, the family-owned group behind the world’s oldest firearms manufacturer, may consider further transactions involving public companies after its presence in the US was boosted by the acquisition of a 25% stake in US rival Sturm Ruger & Co.

“Getting a stake in a listed company will allow us to review whether there will be other opportunities, other deals in capital markets,” Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Pietro Gussalli Beretta said in an interview on Friday.

Beretta disclosed that day that its tender offer for as much as $108 million in Ruger shares was oversubscribed. The offer expired Thursday, with the final allocation of shares still to be determined.

Gussalli Beretta said the two manufactures complement each other, with Ruger holding a strong position in the US and their products targeting different segments of the market.

The Ruger stake caps a three-decade effort by Beretta to expand from its Italian roots into a global firearms group through acquisitions. Since Gussalli Beretta established the holding company in 1995, it has completed more than 20 transactions, expanding into ammunition and optics and increasing annual revenue to €1.68 billion ($1.89 billion) from €202 million.

Beretta, now based in Luxembourg, was formed near Brescia in 1526, then part of the Republic of Venice. It still has its main factory there.

Completion of the $44.80-a-share tender offer ends a months-long process that started with negotiations over Beretta’s influence over its US rival. A May compromise set a 25% ownership cap, gave Beretta conditional rights to nominate up to two independent directors and imposed a three-year standstill on shareholder activism.

“This investment didn’t get off to an easy start,” Gussalli Beretta said. “Now the relationship is clear, and we need to move forward”. He said the deal leaves Ruger independent while opening the door to cooperation between the companies.

Beretta had previously sought to increase its stake to around 30% and pressed for board representation, while Ruger had warned about the risk of a gradual acquisition of control.

The Ruger investment also marks the first time Beretta has invested in a publicly traded peer, according to the company. It could bring the group closer to US capital markets and pave the way for other types of transactions, Gussalli Beretta said, while cautioning that minority investments shouldn’t necessarily be viewed as a model Beretta intends to repeat.

The holding’s North American revenue declined 16% to €537.3 million in 2025, while sales in Europe rose 11.3% to €931 million, according to its financial statements, helped by stronger defense and law-enforcement demand. The group directly operates nine companies in the US and has five sites, one under construction.

The Ruger agreement allows the companies to explore potential cooperation in manufacturing, sourcing, supply chains and sales. With Ruger’s US strength complementing Beretta’s international distribution network, the biggest immediate opportunities may lie in commercial cooperation, Gussalli Beretta said. The two companies could also explore expanding Ruger’s sales outside the US through Beretta’s existing operations.

Beretta Holding’s portfolio spans firearms, ammunition and optics firms including Benelli, Sako, Norma and Steiner. While the group has traditionally been focused on the civilian and sporting markets, defense and law enforcement comprised 40% of revenue last year, up from 34% in 2024.