New Era Taking Shape in Auto Retail Vendor M&A Activity November 1, 2019 — Pivotal. That’s probably the best word to describe vendor mergers and acquisitions and investments among automotive retail vendors in 2019. Aggressive roll-up plays, new directions, and evolving industries forming now will reshape the industry over the next five years. In TBR’s… Continue Reading
AUTOVATE 2019
On December 2nd and 3rd, The Banks Report will hold its third annual AUTOVATE conference in Austin, TX at the Kimpton Van Zandt Hotel. We’ve designed the summit to be a boutique, one-of-a-kind event to help dealer executives, investors, entrepreneurs, and automakers cut through the typical conference hype. We take a unique approach in that… Continue Reading
Two Marketing Tech Firms to Announce Merger
July 17, 2019 — New York-based private equity firm CIP Capital is continuing the roll-up strategy it started in 2016 when it acquired four marketing firms — OneCommand, Peak Performance, TimeHighway and DPS (Dealer Product Services) — combining them into a new entity called Affinitiv. CIP Capital is acquiring Clearwater, FL-based AutoLoop and will merge… Continue Reading
Cox Automotive, CDK Settle Antitrust & Data Lawsuit
July 16, 2019 — Late last week, CDK Global and Cox Automotive and its subsidiaries informed the federal court in Illinois they have settled their lawsuits resulting from a long-standing dispute over access to data and how that data is used. The settlement does not impact other parties involved in the multi-district litigation (MDL) that… Continue Reading
Chip Perry Retires as CEO of TrueCar
June 3, 2019 — After three and half years at the helm of TrueCar, Chip Perry is stepping down as CEO and president, the company announced today. TrueCar has not named a replacement for Perry, who will continue to consult with the company. Perry, one of the pioneers in the automotive Internet space, founded AutoTrader… Continue Reading
PureCars Sold to Private Equity and Original Investor
May 6, 2019 — Following a three and a half-year stint with Raycom Media, PureCars has been sold to private equity firm Diversis Capital and Stage 1 Ventures, its original investor. Raycom Media acquired the automotive marketing technology firm in October 2015 for more than $125 million. But as part of its January sale to… Continue Reading
Firm Tied to Tampa Bay Buccaneers Owner Buying Dealerships in California
May 3, 2019 — British dealer group Pendragon PLC (LON: PDG) announced yesterday it is selling two California Jaguar Land Rover dealerships as part of its plan to exit the U.S. market. Pendragon is selling its Jaguar Land Rover dealership in Newport Beach to U.S. Auto Trust for $40.3 million (£31 million). U.S. Auto Trust… Continue Reading
Cars.com Sales Process Ongoing, Extends Board Nomination Deadline
March 25, 2019 — Although sources confirmed to us two weeks ago an acquisition of Cars.com was close, we’re still waiting. But signs are a deal should be announced in the next several days. According to a press release this morning, the process is ongoing and involves “multiple parties.” The biggest indication, though, is that… Continue Reading
Tesla Again Revamps Its Retail Strategy
March 11, 2019 — Tesla’s strategy of closing its retail network apparently is a work in progress. After shutting down 10% of its retail locations the last couple of weeks, Tesla announced on its blog last night that it has stopped the process and will evaluate another 20% of its sales locations in coming months.… Continue Reading
Prime Motor Group Acquires Northeast Dealer Group
February 20, 2019 — The Prime Automotive Group added six dealerships last week when it acquired the Marubeni America Corporation’s Auto Gallery in Norwood, MA. The fast-growing Prime, backed by GPB Capital, now has 68 dealerships with revenues approaching $3.5 billion. The transaction is the third large dealership buy-sell of the year and continues the… Continue Reading
