April 5, 2016 — Despite a relatively quiet first quarter, the hot merger and acquisition pace among automotive retail vendors the last couple of years should continue well into 2016. From January 2014 to December 2015, the industry saw 47 IPOs, acquisitions and investments totaling an estimated $37 billion in capital changing hands. (Read TBR’s recap…
March 31, 2016 — From January 2013 to December 2015, the six public dealer groups acquired 149 new car dealership rooftops, including 24 stores in Brazil, Spain and the United Kingdom, adding an approximate $8.7 billion in revenue over the three years. The acquisitions comprise 15% of the 1,002 total buy-sells tracked by The Banks Report the last three years.…
January 14, 2016 — Vendor acquisition activity in 2015 was brisk with 30 transactions getting across the finish line. But even though the number of acquisitions doubled what the industry saw in 2014, the total dollar figure was significantly less in 2015. More than $30 billion in equity changed hands in 2014 as several deals…
October 12, 2015 — A little more than a week ago, the simmering battle between DMS firms and other automotive retail vendors over data access and integration went nuclear. To be fair, the issue has plagued the automotive retail space for more than 20 years as certain DMS firms have sought to restrict or control third party…
September 22, 2015 — Vista Equity Partners’ pending $6.5 billion acquisition of Solera Holdings may be on hold as news leaked this week that another buyer has entered the picture creating what may be a bidding war for the service and collision repair software firm. The new potential buyer is IHS, confirming what we speculated…
August 22, 2015 — By the end of the year, it is conceivable the automotive retail industry may see at least three publicly traded vendors go private in deals ranging from $4.5 billion to $9-$10 billion. Dealertrack, CDK Global and Solera Holdings, all multi-billion dollar vendors, are either close to or are exploring sales to private…
July 31, 2015 — The first six months of 2015 have not been kind to TrueCar. The stock price, which was just under $23 on December 31, is now trading below $7. The question is, can the company rebound? The challenges seem to be piling up — multiple lawsuits; a significant second quarter earnings miss;…
July 5, 2015 — Through June, dealership buy-sells continues to be vibrant and is on a record pace fueled by a strong May and June coupled with Berkshire Hathaway’s purchase of the Van Tuyl Group in March. Meanwhile, automakers continue to leverage the Right of First Refusal to scuttle deals. The industry hit the mid-point…
July 2, 2015 — In this report The Banks Report analyzes the financials of Cox’s pending acquisition of Dealertrack; why the deal makes sense; and its effect on the industry and other companies. Background Cox Automotive’s pending acquisition of Dealertrack is big on several levels. Not only is the $4 billion deal the biggest acquisition financially… Continue Reading
July 2, 2015 — Its stock price has more than doubled since October, yet CDK is transforming its company. Executives recently announced a series of moves that will have a long term effect on the company’s future. The moves include an ambitious financial plan to return value to shareholders; a new board member who could end… Continue Reading