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, […]
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June 28, 2016 — Volkswagen is expected to announce settlements with U.S. regulatory agencies and 475,000 customers for lying about its diesel emissions today that could exceed $15 billion. According to numerous media reports, the deal only affects the 475,000 customers that purchased 2009 – 2015 2.0 liter diesel Volkswagen vehicles. A separate deal that could […]
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June 30, 2016 — Today, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration took the unusual step of warning the public not to drive certain 2001 – 2003 Honda and Acura vehicles, due to the high likelihood of their Takata-made airbag inflators exploding in a crash. The agency says that within laboratory settings, the inflators have a 50% chance […]
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July 3, 2016 — The long term effects on the auto industry resulting from Great Britain’s vote to exit the European Union may well be determined by how amicable the divorce proceedings are. Early indications are that the breakup could be ugly. But it’s only been a week since the Brits shocked the world so […]
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July 4, 2016 — Private equity firm Thomas 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 […]
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July 5, 2016 — The four day rally is over. Automotive retail stocks are getting slaughtered today along with the rest of the stock market today. A steep drop in crude oil prices along with Brexit fears which reignited as Great Britain’s Conservative party began the first round of selecting its new leader today are […]
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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 […]
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July 7, 2016 — AutoNation announced this morning it is acquiring four luxury dealerships in the Westchester County, New York market. AutoNation is buying BMW Mt. Kisco, Land Rover Mt. Kisco and Jaguar Land Rover Larchmont/New Rochelle from The Premier Collection. It also is adding White Plains Jaguar from DiSimone Imports The new stores are […]
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To steal a phrase, Silicon Valley appears to be gripped by an “irrational exuberance” for the future utopia promised by connected and autonomous vehicle technology. At the recent Connected & Charged conference presented by Prospect Silicon Valley held at the SAP campus in Palo Alto, CA, it was striking to see the attention given by panelists and speakers on […]
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July 12, 2016 — Dealership acquisition activity is showing a slight slowdown according to data compiled for TBR’s 2016 Mid-Year Dealership Buy-Sell Report. (Subscribers to The Banks Report can download Excel files with buy-sell activity going back to January 2013). Through June of 2016, there were 108 different transactions accounting for 177 rooftops changing hands. In […]
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July 18, 2016 — Brian MacDonald’s turn around plan for CDK Global appears to be off to a good start, according to preliminary results for its fourth quarter fiscal year earnings (ending June 30, 2016). MacDonald, who was appointed president and CEO of CDK earlier this year, stepped up the company’s transformation plan that was […]
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July 18, 2016 — In a meeting with dealers on Friday, Volkswagen executives said they would make a decision within the next month regarding compensating its dealers for damages from the diesel emissions scandal. Friday’s event is part of a series of meetings with dealers in which VW executives are outlining how the company plans to […]
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July 19, 2016 — As news leaked yesteday that the FBI and SEC is investigating Fiat Chrysler Automobiles for possible sales fraud, a key question kept popping up in conversations — how is what FCA allegedly did any different than what other automakers do when it comes to reporting sales? For years — even decades — […]
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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, […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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August 13, 2016 — Lithia Motors has acquired Kemp Ford in Thousand Oaks, CA, renaming it DCH Ford it’s fourth acquisition in 2016. The purchase should increase Lithia’s revenues by $65 million annually. The publicly traded dealer group, based in Medford, OR, acquired Riverside Subaru in Riverside, CA in January and Ira Toyota in Milford, MA […]
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