Cliff Banks - The Banks Report

California Superstores Sells Two More Stores

 California Superstores have sold two more dealerships in the last month in what appears to be a dismantling of the dealer group. The group, which began in late 2010,  once owned as many as 11 dealerships but is down to four.  The two most recent sales include Courtesy Chevrolet-Cadillac in San Jose and the Folsom Chrysler…

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Cliff Banks - The Banks Report

DealerTrack Launches New CRM, 2nd Quarter Numbers Strong

DealerTrack reported strong second quarter earnings yesterday evening beating estimates on revenue by more than $11 million and earning-per-share by $0.04 giving its stock price a small bump during after-hours trading. Revenue for the quarter came in at $224.8 million — 85% higher than second quarter 2013. DealerTrack executives revised year-end revenue projections from $814.0…

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July Dealership Buy-Sell Activity

July Dealership Buy-Sell Activity

The dealership buy-sell market remained hot in July with 27 confirmed acquisition bringing the total for 2014 to 151 rooftops and 225 brands changing hands. In 2013, 110 dealerships changed owners through July. To download an Excel file of this year’s acquisitions click TBR_July_Buy_Sell_Excel. Chevrolet held onto its lead for the year with 16 acquisitions.…

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Cliff Banks - The Banks Report

AutoTrader Developments – Updated

August 21, 2014 — UPDATED: Cox Enterprises announces Cox Automotive — as TBR predicted more than a week ago. Additionally, Manheim announced an acquisition in Brazil, adding to its global footprint. August 9, 2014 — Recently, there have been some intriguing developments in Atlanta at AutoTrader headquarters. Executive Leadership Earlier this week, AutoTrader.com announced it…

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Cliff Banks - The Banks Report

KKR Acquires Internet Brands and CarsDirect

Internet Brands, the parent company to CarsDirect.com and AutoData Solutions, was acquired today by the private equity group KKR for $1.1 billion. JMI Equity and Hellman & Friedman have owned Internet Brands since 2010 when they paid $640 million to take the company private. CEO Bob Brisco, who has run the company since the fall…

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Cliff Banks - The Banks Report

Vista’s Interesting Play with DealerSocket

The story regarding DealerSocket and Vista Equity Partners’ investment in the CRM firm is a bit clearer today but still raises several questions. TBR first broke the story while at the Digital Dealer conference in Atlantic City on May 6th on Twitter reporting that Vista Equity had acquired a majority interest in DealerSocket. A private…

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Cliff Banks - The Banks Report

New Era as Dealers Come Under Increased Attacks for Alleged Non-compliance

January 27, 2014 — Compliance officer sounds so Big Brother-ish or something that dates back to the Soviet era, but it’s quickly becoming a must-have for car dealers – and perhaps even the advertising agencies that service dealers. Here’s why: the Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the attorneys general from numerous… Continue Reading

Cliff Banks - The Banks Report

TrueCar Files Trademark Lawsuit Against Sonic Automotive

September 4, 2013 — We’re still working on the details but we do know in August TrueCar filed a lawsuit against the SonicAutomotive Group alleging trademark infringement. Sonic has been implementing a one-price, no haggle program for all of its stores. Earlier this year, Sonic came up with True Price as the name for the… Continue Reading