Sheehy Auto Stores are gearing up to celebrate the company’s 50th anniversary. And the dealer group focused in the mid-Atlantic region will be recognizing its golden milestone over the course of 2016.
The company was founded back in 1966 by Vince Sheehy Sr. with the opening of Sheehy Ford, a small dealership in the Washington, D.C., area.
Today, Sheehy Auto Stores is the 37th largest dealer group in nation with 23 stores. The dealer group is still family owned and has grown to more than $1 billion in sales with 35,000 new and used vehicles sold each year.
Through its growth, the company now operates stores in and around Baltimore, Annapolis, Md., Washington, D.C. and Richmond, Va.
"We are very proud of the steady growth we have achieved over the years," said Vince Sheehy, President of Sheehy Auto Stores. "I credit our success to our dedicated employees and our customers who have come to trust us over many years.
The dealer group currently employs more than 1,800 full and part-time employees and has always believed in promoting from within, the company shared. And some Sheehy employees have been with the company for 40 years or more.
The core values and founding principles of Sheehy Auto Stores has been two-fold and has remained central to the company's success throughout its 50 years in business. A strong commitment to customer service, combined with the importance to supporting the local communities the company serves have helped drive growth.
The company’s approach has won their stores some of the top awards in the industry. For example, each Sheehy Ford store is Blue Oval Certified, and Sheehy's Glen Burnie and Manassas Nissan stores have earned Nissan's Owner First Award for their achievements in customer satisfaction. In addition, Sheehy's Honda store is a past President's award winner, to highlight a few of the company’s accolades.
The dealerships also work to support their respective communities. Each year, the company donates more than $100,000 to a select charity as part of the company's 50-day sales campaign.
Over the past few years, the dealer group has supported the American Heart Association, as well as events and participation of employees to help raise awareness of the charity's mission. Past recipients included the Susan G. Komen Foundation Race for the Cure.
The company also donates more than $125,000 each year, split among various local charities, as part of their annual end of year Giving Campaign.
Those interested should check out www.sheehy.com through the year for updates and 50th anniversary happenings throughout the dealerships.
Dominion Dealer Solutions released its second tool for store managers to leverage in less than a week.
On the heels of rolling out a monthly payment tool, Dominion Dealer Solutions on Tuesday introduced what it’s calling ShopMyWay, a suite of shopping tools designed to enable the vehicle buyer to control the shopping and research processes.
The company explained that ShopMyWay lets consumers not only search a dealer group’s entire inventory based on specific features or preferences, but also compare those vehicles side by side.
Additionally, online vehicle shoppers can view the value of a current trade and ascertain which vehicles can be purchased based on prequalified credit.
Dominion Dealer Solutions explained that dealer groups have searched for a way to maximize their businesses’ entire inventory online, facilitating online shopping and directing traffic to their own websites. The company added that dealers also need an environment where they can provide information to high or mid-funnel shoppers, empowering them to shop for vehicles based on their own needs.
Dominion Dealer Solutions general manager Nicole Case indicated ShopMyWay can capture these high and mid-funnel shoppers and create engagement opportunities with them. Case noted these shoppers typically search third-party or OEM websites for the same information that ShopMyWay now lets them view right on the dealership’s website.
With ShopMyWay, dealers can further connect with these shoppers without redirecting them to an automotive portal or manufacturer website.
“This is a first of its kind solution that allows a dealer group to provide consumers with the automotive shopping experience they always wanted,” Case said.
The company went on to mention ShopMyWay can provide an end-to-end, consumer-driven shopping experience. The sites are designed to be easy to use for vehicle, trade and payment-oriented automotive shoppers. Consumers can search the entire dealer group’s inventory by payment preference and look at detailed, side-by-side vehicle comparisons.
Without consumers having to leave the dealer group website, the full-service trade valuation tool can let them pre-qualify for credit and payments so dealerships can efficiently follow up. In addition to providing a singular digital resource for car buyers conducting research on a dealer group website, ShopMyWay can reduce the dependence and money spent on third-party automotive sites while driving high-quality appointments directly to the dealership.
Instead of the dealer group website acting as a directory, Dominion Dealer Solutions said ShopMyWay can make the site a destination for consumers, using the same science-driven responsive website design behind Dominion’s websites.
Sean Stansell, product manager for Dominion Websites, said: “Google identifies 19 digital research touchpoints for auto purchasers. With ShopMyWay, dealer groups can instead make theirs the only one.
“They can eliminate third-party distractions and establish that direct shopping relationship with the consumer,” Stansell said.
Asbury Automotive Group announced Friday it has broke ground on a new Nissan dealership in Georgia.
The new store is located in Cumming, Ga. which the dealer group said is a “high-growth” Atlanta suburb.
The store is scheduled to open late this year at 1301 Buford Highway. The facility will feature a 45,000-square-foot building, 20 service bays, six detail bays and a standalone carwash.
“This is an important component of an Atlanta market re-alignment,” the company shared, which began last September with the groundbreaking of new Nissan and Infiniti dealerships on a major traffic artery in metro Atlanta off Interstate 285, near Interstate-85.
"We are honored to represent one of our major manufacturing partners and thrilled to serve the Cumming community," said Asbury's executive vice president and chief operating officer, David Hult. "These investments will position our dealerships in excellent retail locations and provide us with significant growth opportunities across all business lines, and most importantly, they will bring jobs to the local community."
This is the company’s first acquisition since announcing the closure of its Q auto store in Jacksonville, Fla., which will close its doors by the end of the month.
This past October marked the first anniversary of Lithia Motor’s purchase of DCH Auto Group.
And if the company’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2015 results are any indictor, the combination is working out well for Lithia. In fact, Lithia boosted same-store used sales in Q4, which included the DCH stores, by 12 percent.
The dealer group also made its first two DCH store purchases to kick off 2016. In January, Lithia purchased Riverside Subaru of Riverside, Calif., which it said would be renamed DCH Subaru of Riverside. And earlier this month, the company purchased Ira Toyota/Scion of Milford, Mass., and the store will be renamed DCH Toyota/Scion of Milford.
"With the Subaru and Toyota stores, we are excited to have acquired our first stores within the DCH metropolitan strategy on both the East Coast and the West Coast," said Bryan DeBoer, president and chief executive officer at Lithia.
During the company’s conference call to discuss fourth quarter and full-year 2015 results, DeBoer outlined DCH progress and strategy, and Wall Street investors were very interested in this portion of the dealer group’s business.
"October 1 marked the first anniversary of our combination with DCH. We are pleased to report that we have fully integrated and realized most cost synergies,” said DeBoer."Their teams are continuing to expand their entrepreneurial approach to operating in metro markets, as they attack market share and improve earnings. All numbers from this point forward will be on a same-store basis, which again will include DCH results for the quarter."
DeBoer said the dealership was happy with its total gross margin rates, even in light of DCH’s slightly different strategy than other Lithia stores.
"Our total gross margin was 14.7 percent (in Q4) compared to 14.6 percent from the same period last year, an increase of 10 basis points, which is an accomplishment considering the DCH volume-based strategy," he said.
As far as the acquisition market goes, DeBoer shared DCH is pursuing a metropolitan strategy as many new store candidates have been identified.
“The acquisition market remains active with a significant number of stores for sale. With Lithia targeting exclusive markets and DCH pursuing a metropolitan strategy, we have identified more than 2,600 stores nationwide as candidates,” he said. “We remain confident that we will find accretive purchases in the near-term to increase our portfolio, and continue to expand our footprint.”
In discussing opportunities for DCH during the call, DeBoer praised DCH president George Liang and his team.
“In terms of other accretion in DCH and other opportunities, I think, George Liang and their teams have developed and grown pretty quickly. They've actually got most of the synergies that they expected,” said DeBoer. “And I think now it's more of a function of the opportunities to now move towards what Lithia's margins are.”
DeBoer said the management teams believes DCH was just over the 2 percent pre-tax margin in the quarter, while Lithia was about at a 3.7 to 3.8 percent margin.
“So, together, we think that that other 1.5 percent or so is what the opportunity remains for DCH to extract,” said DeBoer. “What we noticed pretty early on is the amount of gross profit and volume that are generated in the DCH stores is vastly different than Lithia stores.”
And SG&A expenses at DCH stores have been a little higher than Lithia’s traditionally are, and management is looking to close that gap. For Q4 overall, Lithia SG&A expense as a percentage of gross profit was 68.2 percent. For the full year, adjusted SG&A expenses as a percentage of gross profit sat at 67.9 percent. And management said efficiently operating the dealer group’s stores was one of the company’s primary objectives over the course of 2015.
“So, the ability to play with expenses is pretty large because the grosses are so large (at DCH) and they're such a large quantity, so they're doing a great job of finding new opportunities. We spent the last two weeks down in the West Coast stores in Los Angeles,” said DeBoer. “And their team is motivated, they're hungry, and they're looking for the next opportunity, and I think that's really to extract that extra SG&A out of the stores.”
DeBoer estimated DCH’s SG&A was in the 72 to 73 percentile, “as a percentage of growth.” According to the CEO, Lithia sits around the 66 percentile.
And although expenses are still a bit higher than in traditional Lithia stores, DeBoer is pleased with the progression so far.
“Sixteen months ago, when we combined, and I think, if you look back at our references, DCH was at mid-80s percentile, and thought that it would be a real struggle even to get to maybe what we would call the more competitive metro-based peer group, which was really in the low to mid-70s percentile,” said DeBoer. “We were there in one year, and we assumed it may take three years to five years.”
Now, Lithia management is trying to drive the DCH stores towards an equivalent SG&A rate as Lithia, "which is another 600 basis points drop in SG&A," DeBoer said.
"I'm starting to believe, and I think our teams are starting to believe that it (DCH) may even be able to challenge things below the Lithia because of that substantial volume and growth that's generated in both service and parts and new- and used-vehicle sales," DeBoer said.
DCH is defined by their “metro strategy,” said DeBoer, which is somewhat different than most similar approaches and may have an impact on lowering SG&A expenses in the future.
"They own 71 percent of their facilities, which allows for static rents than in the past,” said DeBoer. “We did have to remodel a number of stores, which increased rent a little bit, but as a whole, their rent factors are actually about the same as Lithia."
When looking at opportunities for the future of DCH stores, management thinks the road looks bright due in part to the “stability” of the line’s employees.
DeBoer said many of the stores tout “exceptional tenure” for metro markets; in fact DCH GMs had been with their stores at the time of the Lithia purchase for an average of 10 years.
“Now, George and their teams have made some upgrades over the past year. But, ultimately, when people come to DCH or Lithia for that matter, they come and they seem to stay because of the transparency in our models and the simplicity of our performance metrics,” said DeBoer. “And I think that's a uniqueness that allows people to really thrive in our environments.”
All that said, Wall Street investors wanted to know how quickly the dealer group management expected to close the SG&A gap between DCH and the core Lithia stores.
“I wish I knew. What I do know is that we challenge them on a daily and monthly basis. They seem to be moving quicker than we ever expected on this stuff. And I think as long as we can keep them feeling that there's opportunities and that they haven't reached their limitations, which is what we've had to do in the Lithia division as well,” said DeBoer.
“It's one of our values of continuous improvement. They sure seem like they live that and they remain humble and eyes are wide open. So to me that's the making and the formula for continuing to grow and capture opportunities as quick as humanly possible,” he said.
Like any dealership that turns used vehicles, Sonic Automotive is keeping close tabs on what might be one of the most important metrics — gross profit per unit.
Sonic closed the year with a 3.1-percent dip in gross profit per used vehicle retailed, as the figure landed at $1,384.
The slight annual dip didn’t alarm Sonic executive vice president of operations Jeff Dyke because “we’ve done enough homework.” Dyke indicated that Sonic expects its gross profit in the used-vehicle department to be near $1,400, give or take $15 either up or down.
“I don't see that changing. I think we'll be right in that same ballpark as we move throughout the year,” Dyke said when Sonic reported its fourth-quarter and annual financial statements earlier this week.
“Our pre-owned business is really rolling on both sides of the table, EchoPark and Sonic. And so, we expect that to continue on,” he added.
Sonic closed the year by retailing 6.4 percent more used vehicles than in 2014, establishing a new company record at 117,123 units. And Dyke highlighted that Sonic is off to a great start in 2016 with regard to grosses on used turns.
“We’ve had a fantastic January. We're having a fantastic February from a pre-owned perspective, and margins are all in line about the same,” he said.
“You could fluctuate a little bit here and there. I guess with more off-lease cars coming, there's probably going to be a little pressure there, but nothing so drastic that it’s going to make that big a difference,” Dyke went on to say.
Nevertheless, Wall Street observers wondered if the margin pressure experienced when dealerships are trying to move new luxury models would be impacting Sonic’s efforts to turn used high-line vehicles. Dyke acknowledged there might be some impact on certified pre-owned luxury units but not non-CPO vehicles, which constitute about 30 percent of Sonic’s overall used-sales volume.
“Every car, from our perspective, has got its own unique individuality, and we sell it based on the value that our systems tell us what we can get for that vehicle, and so, we've been really consistent in our margin,” Dyke said.
“If you look not just a couple of quarters but for a long while now, we sort of target that ballpark, and we feel like that's where we get our best turn and where we gets the best volume, which overall generates the most gross dollars and related gross dollars for the category,” he went on to say.
EchoPark update
Sonic reported that its trio of EchoPark locations — the uniquely branded stores dedicated to selling only used vehicles — turned 3,225 vehicles last year. That network of stores is expected to grow quickly because of the strategy Sonic wants to employ, opening four or more stores simultaneously instead of just one at a time. Why?
The company indicated it costs at least $7 million to build a new EchoPark location, taking six months for construction that executives are hoping to shave down to four.
“One of the other reasons why we are waiting to open simultaneously is when we order the materials for construction, it’s significantly less expensive and we can move significantly faster in erecting facilities and it’s bringing the costs down for these pods,” Sonic chief executive officer Scott Smith said.
Dyke added, “And on top of that, the training that we do. We’ll train for four or five stores at one time versus training one store at a time, which reduces cost as well.”
The success thus far of Sonic’s three EchoPark locations near Denver is another reason why Dyke has high expectations for two more locations in the market that are projected to open later this year.
“We’ve learned a lot with our first three stores opening. We’re very pleased with the amount of volume and gross that we're getting out of those stores, and so it won’t be long now that we'll see a bunch more EchoPark stores up and running,” Dyke said.
Technicians and reconditioning
Sonic hired more than 200 technicians to work in its service bays a year ago. Dyke would like to bring in another 100 tech to keep dealer group operations performing at peak capacity.
“We’re working every day to bring more techs on board,” he said. “We’re always out looking for more technicians. And we have the capacity for them and we’re building more capacity in our facilities. So, no question, we’d hire more technicians.”
Part of the reason why Sonic has such a high demand for technicians is the reconditioning the company does to used vehicles.
“We have one set reconditioning standard for our vehicles at EchoPark and a set reconditioning standard for our vehicles at Sonic Automotive and we follow those to the T,” Dyke said.
“That’s one of the, we think, competitive advantages that we have,” he continued. “We have a low return ratio in terms of those cars, and we’re really focused a lot on making sure that the product that we put out on our lot is a high-quality product from a reconditioning perspective.”
Lithia Motors finished 2015 with full-year and fourth-quarter used sales both up by double digits, and the dealer group also experienced a spike in new-car sales, as well.
The company said Wednesday morning it sold a total of 24,010 used vehicles during the fourth quarter of last year, up by 11.4 percent from the same period of 2014.
And for the full year, Lithia sold 99,109 used vehicles, up by a whopping 38.3 percent year-over-year.
The retailer also said it enjoyed a 7.1-percent increase in Q4 new-vehicles sales (which came in at 34,350), while full-year new sales (137,486) soared by 50.9 percent.
Lithia management also said that used-vehicle retail same stores sales were up by 12 percent for the last quarter and increased by 13 percent for the full year.
For same-store used retail units, the dealer group sold 23,355 used vehicles in Q4, up from 21,430 sold during the same quarter of 2014. And for the year, according to its same-store stats, the company sold 77,552 used vehicles, up from 70,976 sold over the course of 2014.
And unit sales weren’t the only metrics rising for the dealer group last year. The company reported the highest fourth-quarter and full-year adjusted net income in company history; for Q4, Lithia’s adjusted net income came in at $46.1 million, up from $37.5 million in Q4 of 2014.
And revenue for the full-year increased by 46 percent to $7.9 billion from $5.4 billion in 2014. This was due in part to a surge in used-vehicle sales, as well as increases in sales in departments such as F&I and service dollars, as well.
Service body and parts same-stores sales increased by 10 percent over Q4 and for the full-year, while same-store F&I dollars per units increased $69 to $1,189 for the quarter and were up $73 to $1,244 for the full-year.
Used revenue was also on the rise right along with dollars and sales in these crucial dealership departments:
- Used vehicle retail revenue was up to $469.4 million in Q4, up 14.6 percent year-over-year.
- Used vehicle retail revenue increased 41.4 percent to $1.9 billion for the full-year 2015.
The dealer group has been adding stores consistently since October of last year — purchases included a Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Fiat store in Concord Calif.; a Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Alpha Fiate dealership in Spokane, Wash; a Subaru store in Riverside, Calif.; and a Toyota store in Milford, Mass.
The company estimated the stores will contribute approximately $200 million in annual revenues to the dealer group.
Taking a quick look at what numbers Lithia is projecting for used vehicles this year, the dealer group said it expects used-vehicle sales to increase by 6 percent in 2016 with used-vehicle gross margin growth of 12.4 to 12.6 percent.
Editor’s note: Stay tuned for further analysis from Auto Remarketing on Lithia’s used performance in Q4 and full-year 2015.
“Why should I buy this vehicle with a CPO warranty over, say, anything else?”
If you’re a dealer on a franchised lot, you've most likely faced that question.
As part of Auto Remarketing’s annual “Best CPO Dealers in the United States” special edition, we connected with some of the top-selling franchised dealers in the CPO space, to get an inside view of what they do to move more certified units.
Audi Atlanta topped the charts for Audi CPO sales last year, moving over 50 percent more CPO vehicles than the next dealership on the list, with nearly 1,000 units sold in 2015.
AR reached out to Tracie Maloney, Audi Atlanta’s general manager and vice president, to see what the strongest quality of a CPO Audi vehicle is that their dealership emphasizes to CPO customers that seems to be a solid dealer-maker.
She pointed directly to just how simple and convenient it is to employ an Audi CPO vehicle’s warranty.
“The warranty is attached to the vehicle’s VIN number, which makes it a very smooth process when you take your vehicle in for a repair,” Maloney said. “You don’t need to have pre-approval on repairs or a paper contract. Consumers don’t have to go through the hassle of the aftermarket warranty companies that typically require these things. The dealer can simply pull up your vehicle by the VIN.”
Maloney also tipped her hat to her techs, who she says really are the backbone behind the inherent trust an Audi CPO warranty engenders.
“Another benefit to the consumer is the confidence you can have in that vehicle due to the very high standards set by Audi,” she said. “Our certified Audi technicians take pride in signing off on the CPO inspection books, which require minimum standards on things like tires and brakes.”
Here's the full list of Audi's top CPO dealers in the U.S. last year:
Best CPO Dealers: Audi
| Dealer |
2015 CPO Sales |
| Audi Atlanta |
976 |
| Audi North Houston |
624 |
| Audi Central Houston |
610 |
| The Audi Exchange |
592 |
| Audi Burlington |
556 |
| Santa Monica Audi |
537 |
| Keyes Audi |
531 |
| Audi Palo Alto |
490 |
| Audi Bellevue |
486 |
| Fletcher Jones Audi |
474 |
To check out the other dealers that sold the most CPO vehicles in 2015, as well as sales insights from the top stores from other brands, check out the “Best CPO Dealers in the United States” feature in the Feb, 15 edition of Auto Remarketing.
Sonic Automotive established nine new quarterly or annual performance records, and the dealer group’s used-vehicle department led the way.
According to Sonic’s latest financial statement released on Tuesday, the company retailed 6.4 percent more used vehicles in 2015 than it did a year earlier, turning 117,123 units. That figure included the metal moved at its EchoPark stores, locations that focus on only used vehicles. Sonic retailed 3,225 units at EchoPark.
All those used sales helped Sonic set a record in pre-owned gross profit, which ticked up 3.1 percent year-over-year to $162.0 million.
The company’s annual total gross profit also set a record, coming in at $1.415 billion. Part of that figure came from a new record for annual fixed operations gross profit of $655.4 million.
Sonic also set a new annual record when retailing new vehicles. The dealer group retailed 138,129 new units in 2015, up 1.6 percent over the prior year.
When looking at only the fourth quarter, Sonic closed with four more record-setting performance that sparked the year-end tallies, including the following listed by Sonic:
— Record Q4 pre-owned units and gross profit of 28,220 and $38.8 million, respectively
— Record Q4 new retail units of 35,228, up 1.4 percent over the prior-year quarter
— Record Q4 fixed operations gross profit of $169.1 million, up 8.2 percent over the prior-year quarter
— Record Q4 total gross profit of $363.8 million, up 4.4 percent over the prior-year quarter
Sonic reported full-year adjusted net income from continuing operations of $100.2 million, or $1.97 per diluted share, that includes expenses of $16.3 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, related to the company’s EchoPark operations. For all of 2014, Sonic reported adjusted net income from continuing operations of $100.0 million, or $1.90 per diluted share, that includes expenses of $15.7 million, or $0.18 per diluted share, related to EchoPark.
For just Q4, Sonic generated adjusted net income of $30.9 million, or $0.61 per diluted share. Included in these adjusted amounts are pre-tax expenses of $3.6 million, or $0.04 per diluted share, related to EchoPark operations. To close 2014, the company posted $32.5 million, or $0.63 per diluted share in adjusted net income.
“The year ended up being a great year for Sonic and EchoPark,” Sonic’s executive vice president of operations Jeff Dyke. “I am very proud of our team as we progressed together on our long-term strategy to redefine the automotive guest experience. This is a huge undertaking that we are confident will reward our guests, associates and long-term shareholders.
“We have been able to grow gross across all of our revenue streams with the exception of new vehicles, which is a direct reflection of manufacturers' inventory growth in particular in the luxury category. Some of the OEM's have simply over produced and it has caused competitive and margin pressures that we have not experienced in several years,” Dyke continued.
“However, the stability and strength of our pre-owned revenue stream has continued to allow us to drive additional profitability in that area,” he went on to say. “In addition, we have overcome the warranty mix issues from earlier in the year, and we were able to increase same store fixed operations gross profit 9.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015 compared to the fourth quarter of 2014.
“Our focus on increasing customer pay, up 7.8 percent on a same store basis during the fourth quarter, was key to achieving this level of growth,” Dyke added.
Dyke called the upcoming growth for EchoPark as “exciting.” Sonic plans to open two more locations in the Denver market during the first half of this year with a pair coming on board in the beginning portion of 2017.
“We also have plans in place to add additional stores in at least two different markets beginning in Q4 2016 depending on real-estate closing dates,” Dyke said.
Editor’s note: For more details about EchoPark and Sonic’s technology investments, watch for a report coming later this week as a part of Auto Remarketing Today.
Along with an increased authorization for buying back company stock, AutoNation appointed a new member to its board of directors who spent part of her career at both Ford and General Motors.
Serving as an independent director on AutoNation's board as of this past Friday is Karen Francis, who now is executive chairman of AcademixDirect, a technology marketing company serving the education industry. Before serving as executive chairman and chief executive officer of AcademixDirect from 2004 to 2007, Francis was chairman and CEO of Publicis & Hal Riney, an advertising agency based in San Francisco.
Prior to entering the advertising and education spaces, Francis was entrenched with two of the three domestic OEMs.
From 2001 to 2002, Francis served as vice president of Ford, where she was responsible for global technology strategies, customer relationship management, global export operations, as well as Ford Direct, the company's online sales initiative structured as a joint venture with Ford dealers.
Before the time with the Blue Oval, Francis was at GM from 1996 to 2000. Francis held several positions with GM, including serving as regional manager of the Chevrolet division responsible for all dealer operations in 11 states, as well as general manager of the Oldsmobile division overseeing dealership operations nationwide.
Francis also serves as a director of the Hanover Insurance Group.
“We are pleased to have Karen join the AutoNation board,” AutoNation chairman, chief executive officer and president Mike Jackson said. “We look forward to the experience and insight that she will bring to the board.”
AutoNation also announced that Robert Brown will retire from the AutoNation board effective upon completion of AutoNation’s 2016 annual meeting of stockholders, which is expected to be held on May 12.
“Bob served as a member of our board for 17 years, and we thank him for his years of valuable service on the board,” Jackson said.
AutoNation authorizes additional $250 million for share repurchase
In other company news, AutoNation said its board of directors authorized the repurchase of up to an additional $250 million of AutoNation's common stock.
With the increased authorization, AutoNation has approximately $250 million total board authorization remaining for share repurchases, as of Friday.
AutoNation has approximately 104 million shares outstanding, as of Thursday.
Asbury Automotive Group will be closing the Q auto store in Jacksonville, Fla., at the end of February, a company spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday to Auto Remarketing. The shutdown is due to the store's performance not being as strong as projected.
Employees of the store, who will be interviewed for jobs at other Asbury dealerships, were told Feb. 9, the spokesperson said.
Asbury decided to shut down the Jacksonville location following a review of recent numbers.
The store is one of three Q auto locations. It is the larger format of the three. Asbury has a medium-format Q auto store in Brandon, Fla., and a small-format store in Fort Myers, Fla.
