Earl Hesterberg provided a blunt response to an analyst’s question on vehicle inventory during the Group 1 Automotive fourth quarter 2021 earnings conference call that took place on Feb. 10. Hesterberg is Group 1 president and chief executive officer, and the analyst asked when Hesterberg thought the inventory shortages that have plagued the industry might […] [Read More]

Contributions from acquired businesses, a growing e-commerce platform and successful navigation of the supply and demand environment. Those are factors that Lithia & Driveway ) president and chief executive officer Bryan DeBoer listed as helping the company achieve record annual 2021 revenues of $22.8 billion. “[Lithia & Driveway] has a track record of exceeding targets […] [Read More]

“Very tough to predict.” That was the response from Asbury Automotive Group president and chief executive officer David Hult to an analyst’s questions regarding when vehicle inventories would return to normal. The analyst went on to ask, would inventories return to somewhere between where they are now and where they used to be, or would […] [Read More]

Sonic Automotive’s immediate focus is to expand and enhance its EchoPark standalone, used-car operation and to integrate its recent acquisition, RFJ Auto Partners and its subsidiaries, into its business, said Sonic chief executive officer David Smith. “We’re going to be disciplined on further acquisitions, but that’s not to say if a deal comes together we […] [Read More]

Penske Automotive’s growth trajectory remains on track, though the company has had to change how it finds new employees and used vehicles, said chief executive officer Roger Penske during the company’s Feb. 9 earnings conference call detailing the company’s financial results for the quarter and year ending Dec. 31. “We had a terrific year,” Penske said. […] [Read More]

Buoyed by robust sales at its AutoNation USA used vehicle stores, its parts and service business, and its consumer finance services unit, AutoNation reported record financial results for its fourth quarter and entire year ending Dec. 31. AutoNation is also “aggressively looking” at adding a captive finance company, said chief executive officer Mike Manley during […] [Read More]

Dealer groups have kicked off the week of NADA Show 2022 much like they’ve spent the past year-and-a-half: with a flurry of buy-sell moves. Starting with the publicly traded variety, Group 1 Automotive announced Monday it has purchased Charles Maund Toyota in Austin, Texas, a store expected to bring in annual revenues of $435 million. […] [Read More]

More than 100 dealerships have another reason for celebration. On Monday, Edmunds announced the winners of the 2022 Edmunds Five Star Dealer Awards. This year’s awards honor 94 dealers nationwide for outstanding customer satisfaction ratings, with an additional 18 earning the prestigious Edmunds Five Star Premier Dealer designation. To qualify for a Five Star Dealer […] [Read More]

AutoNation named two new chief operating officers on Thursday: one for its used-car standalone store, auto auction and collision center businesses; and another for its franchise business. COO and president Jim Bender was set to leave the company Friday, as previously announced. Appointed as COO of the non-franchised business is Dave Koehler, currently the Eastern […] [Read More]

We begin this dealer group M&A roundup in the Southwest, where Phoenix-based Earnhardt Auto Centers has sold two Las Vegas stores — Earnhardt Buick GMC and Earnhardt Mazda — to Jerry Seiner Dealerships, a group based in Utah. This was announced Thursday by Kerrigan Advisors, which represented the Earnhardt group in the transaction. “The sale […] [Read More]