August 11, 2016 — Following its June acquisition of the Australian-based Dealer Solutions, Cox Automotive will acquire News Corp’s 50% stake in CarsGuide, an online automotive classifieds site, also in Australia. Once the acquisition closes sometime in the fourth quarter, Cox will combine CarsGuide with Dealer Solutions and Manheim’s Australian division which includes its buying service SellMyCar into… Continue Reading
July 26, 2016 — Tegna announced this morning that its subsidiary Cars.com has acquired dealer review company DealerRater. The acquisition, which is scheduled to close in August, will give Cars.com four million consumer-submitted reviews. The company was founded in 2002 by Chip Grueter. In late 2013, private equity firm Great Hill Partners took a majority position in… Continue Reading
While much of the media’s attention is on solutions and companies poised to take advantage of the pending “Connected Car” era, the investment community has made some big plays in automotive retail technology. Within the last 42 months, according to data compiled by The Banks Report nearly $50 billion in capital has changed hands through IPOs, mergers, investments… Continue Reading
July 18, 2016 — TBR’s mid-year report on automotive retail vendor M&A activity recaps the 14 acquisitions that occurred the first six months of the year. The report also provides TBR’s outlook for the rest of the year on who the buyers and sellers are, and what deals may be in play. RECAP With 14 acquisitions this year,…
July 7, 2016 — The automotive retail technology world is dominated by three players today — Cox Automotive, CDK Global and Reynolds and Reynolds. On the CRM side, the major players are DealerSocket and ELead1One. Meanwhile, Salesforce is hovering around the industry. The question is, will this power structure continue over the next two to…
July 4, 2016 — Private equity firm Thoma Bravo announced Friday that it is acquiring Trader Corp. from Apax Partners for $1.57 billion. Trader Corp. is the parent of autoTRADER.ca (no affiliation with Autotrader in the U.S. or the U.K.). The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. Several companies — including possible… Continue Reading
June 27, 2016 — Web services firm ReachLocal announced this evening that it is being acquired by Gannett for approximately $4.60 a share in an enterprise deal totaling $156 million. ReachLocal provides website and digital marketing services to nearly 16,000 local businesses including car dealerships. Gannett, which recently failed in its bid to acquire competitor Tribune Publishing,… Continue Reading
June 17, 2016 — Those Canadian tech companies suddenly are hot. A sale of Trader Corp., the parent of autoTRADER.ca, could be announced in the next few weeks, sources close to the deal confirm to TBR. Potential buyers, including large private equity firms along with strategic buyers based in the U.S., are nearing the final… Continue Reading
June 3, 2016 — Internet Brands, owned by private equity firm KKR, acquired Auto Credit Express earlier this week. With the acquisition, Internet Brands creates an expanded presence into the subprime vehicle loan market. Auto Credit Express, founded in 1999, matches subprime customers with financing lenders and dealers. It also provides training for dealers selling to subprime… Continue Reading
May 30, 2016 — UPDATED — A swift kick in the butt from an activist investor followed by a company-wide restructuring has CDK Global’s stock price climbing while possibly signaling the technology firm could be sold within the next several months. This report analyzes the opportunities and challenges presented by the new restructuring and what it…
