October 25, 2016 – Automotive retail vendor merger and acquisition activity slowed slightly in the third quarter with only nine deals and investments announced bringing the total for the year to 25, according data compiled by The Banks Report. The third quarter review provides TBR’s outlook for the fourth quarter along with a recap of all…
October 16, 2016 — With eight acquisitions over the last 13 months along with one significant investment that closed in late September, Reynolds and Reynolds quietly has been one of the more active buyers among automotive retail vendors. On the surface, the strategy appears a bit disjointed and is even taking Reynolds outside the confines of the…
September 18, 2016 — Let me introduce you to Carla, who likely will be a critical member of your BDC and customer support team in the near future. “She” is also a chatbot billed as being the customer’s friend who knows cars. Carla was designed by California-based startup firm CarLabs to assist people with anything… Continue Reading
September 8, 2016 — CIP Capital, a New York-based private equity company new to the automotive retail space, is putting together a unique strategy acquiring four companies and combining them to create Affinitiv Inc. a new technology marketing firm. While other companies have executed roll up strategies in the past (Cox Automotive, DealerTrack, Dealersocket and HGGC are a few…
September 7, 2016 — TEGNA announced this morning it plans to spin off Cars.com to become its own publicly traded company. The transaction, which likely will be tax free for TEGNA shareholders, should take place in the first half of 2017. TEGNA, which became public last year following the split with media giant Gannett, is one… Continue Reading
August 28, 2016 — Amazon.com surprised the automotive industry last week rolling out Amazon Vehicles, an extension of its Amazon automobiles portal. The question is, how does Amazon’s strategy affect automotive retail? The answer for now is, it doesn’t. But it will depending on what Amazon’s next move is. The initiative is the first step of a…
August 12, 2016 — Perhaps the most striking data point from CDK Global’s recent earnings filing is that it is gaining share of the overall North American dealer management system market while also growing the average amount from those contracts. CDK also announced strong results for its 2016 fiscal year along with an agreement with activist investor Elliott Partners to increase the… Continue Reading
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
August 11, 2016 — Cox Automotive announced this week that Brian Geitner will replace Jared Rowe as president of its Media Solutions Group which includes Autotrader, Kelley Blue Book and Dealer.com. Although Rowe was not fired (he is leaving for a position outside of automotive) the move is clear indication that integration following last year’s… 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
