Exclusive: ATK close to deal with gun accessory maker Bushnell - sources

Aerospace and defense products supplier Alliant Techsystems Inc is in advanced talks to buy Bushnell Outdoor Products Inc in a deal that could value the gun accessory maker at around $1 billion, two sources familiar with the matter said on Monday.

A deal for Bushnell, owned by private equity firm MidOcean Partners, comes amid pressure on private equity firms to review investments in gun-related companies following the fatal shooting last December of 26 people at a school in Newtown, Connecticut.

The people said, however, that MidOcean's desire to sell Bushnell was not influenced by those considerations.

The people asked not to be identified because the matter is confidential. They cautioned that a deal has not yet been finalized and negotiations could still fall apart.

MidOcean Partners declined to comment, while ATK and Bushnell did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Bushnell hired Morgan Stanley and Robert W. Baird to shop the company, other people familiar with the matter told Reuters in February.

(Reporting by Olivia Oran and Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler)