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…
November 30, 2015 — The Banks Report has learned that private investment firm HGGC has just completed an acquisition of a third company in the automotive retail industry. The announcement should come in the next couple of days. HGGC, owned by Steve Young, a former NFL quarterback who was elected to the Hall of Fame, currently manages…
November 3, 2015 — Since the middle of 2013, the automotive retail space has been in a period of upheaval as what can only be classified as big money has entered the industry. The last 28 months have probably been the most intense period vendors have ever seen in the history of the industry…
November 2, 2015 — It’s been 10 years since the McGraw-Hill Companies acquired J.D. Power and Associates for nearly $400 million. Now, according to media reports late last week, McGraw-Hill is exploring strategic alternatives for the market research firm and could command as much as $1 billion for a sale. J.D. Power generates about $265 million in…
October 29, 2015 — The vendor acquisitions keep coming as PureCars announced earlier this week it has been acquired by Raycom Media. It’s an intriguing acquisition for Raycom, an employee-owned broadcast company that owns 51 television stations in 38 markets reaching more than 13% of U.S. TV watching homes. PureCars is a digital automotive advertising… Continue Reading
October 10, 2015 — The Banks Report has learned Reynolds and Reynolds has acquired the Assurant Specialty Property’s Title Administration Services. This latest acquisition isn’t going to generate a lot of headlines or rate high on the sexy deal meter, but it adds a critical piece to the Reynolds portfolio of services which includes document management… Continue Reading
October 2, 2015 — No, it’s not 2002, but it’s understandable if you were somewhat confused or experienced feelings of deja vu if you saw the news that Autobytel acquired AutoWeb yesterday. For those of you who were around in 2002, you’re right if you remembered Autobytel acquired a another company also named AutoWeb back then.… Continue Reading
October 1, 2015 — After four extensions and other delays resulting from stipulations from the Department of Justice, Cox Automotive completed the $4 billion acquisition of Dealertrack this morning. Cox is paying $63.25 per share of Dealertrack common stock which ceases trading today on the NASDAQ Global Market. It is the biggest vendor acquisition in the… Continue Reading
September 30, 2015 — The Department of Justice yesterday approved Cox Automotive’s acquisition of Dealertrack provided Dealertrack completes the sale of its Inventory+ solution. The DOJ is requiring the divestiture of Inventory+ because it believes allowing Cox to own both vAuto and Inventory+ would provide Cox with too much of that market , and hence, limit… Continue Reading
September 29, 2015 — The Solera saga takes an interesting turn today as IHS used its quarterly earnings call with analysts to deny media reports that is pursuing an acquisition of Solera. We speculated a couple of weeks ago that Solera would be a good fit for IHS. Both Reuters and Bloomberg reported last week that…