Lithia Motors Inc., as soon as the smallest publicly traded dealership group earlier than embarking on a multiyear dealership shopping for spree, surpassed longtime No. 1 AutoNation Inc. in new autos bought in 2022.
Lithia retailed 271,596 new autos final 12 months, up 4.2 %, and greater than 40,000 autos greater than AutoNation, which retailed 229,971 new autos, a 12 % drop, in 2022.
Lithia retailed 68,159 new autos within the fourth quarter, up 5.2 %. AutoNation additionally noticed a fourth quarter improve with retail gross sales of 60,074 new autos, up 4.3 %.
Lithia’s figures embody a small however undisclosed variety of autos bought in Canada, together with these from a Harley-Davidson retailer, in addition to leisure autos bought at RV shops within the Western U.S. that have been acquired by Lithia in October.
Lithia’s toppling of AutoNation, which had held the highest spot since 1997, was anticipated because the once-smaller Lithia continued shopping for up dealerships at a fee far outpacing AutoNation’s acquisitions. Lithia was forward of AutoNation in new-vehicle gross sales every quarter in 2022.
Lithia, maybe probably the most prolific dealership Lithia, probably the most prolific dealership purchaser the previous few years by way of each single-store and huge non-public group acquisitions, corresponding to Michigan’s Suburban Assortment in 2021, continued to purchase shops in 2022, additional fueling its gross sales progress.
AutoNation, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., acquired 20 franchised dealerships in 2021 in two giant transactions, however has since bought two of these shops. AutoNation additionally purchased 4 dealerships in Colorado in late 2022.
Lithia, primarily based in Medford, Ore., is pursuing a objective of $50 billion in annual income by the tip of 2025 with acquisitions taking part in a serious function.
“We’ve got made a aware determination to make the most of nearly all of our money flows in the direction of acquisitions quite than redistributing them primarily in the direction of shareholders or paying down debt,” Lithia CEO Bryan DeBoer stated Feb. 15 in a name with analysts after the corporate reported fourth-quarter earnings. “As such, we have now and can proceed to determine the inspiration for enormous aggressive benefits and dimension.”
Lithia stated it didn’t have an announcement on surpassing AutoNation.
Lithia noticed its new-vehicle gross sales lead over AutoNation widen all through 2022. Lithia had a lead of 8,500 autos by way of the primary quarter and expanded it to 19,362 autos at midyear. By way of the third quarter, Lithia was up by 33,540 autos.
Each corporations felt the affect of new-vehicle provide shortages in 2022 with same-store new-vehicle gross sales down considerably for each corporations. AutoNation had reported a few of the lowest new-vehicle days’ provide numbers in its peer group in 2021 and 2022.
AutoNation CEO Mike Manley on Feb. 17 described the retailer’s stock and days’ provide as “nonetheless very, very low.”
AutoNation didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon falling to second place.
Prior to now, and as not too long ago as Jan. 20, AutoNation billed itself as “America’s largest and most admired automotive retailer.” Nevertheless, in AutoNation’s two most up-to-date press releases, together with its fourth-quarter earnings launch issued Feb. 17, the label was modified to only “America’s most admired automotive retailer.”
AutoNation’s run within the high spot involves an finish after 1 / 4 century.
AutoNation, initially referred to as Republic Industries Inc., had been No. 1 since 1997 for new-vehicle gross sales as tracked by Automotive Information in its annual record of high dealership teams.
Lithia, in the meantime, labored its manner up the rating, first cracking the highest 10 in 1999 within the tenth spot. Lithia lengthy ranked the bottom of the six main public dealership teams and moved between the No. 9 and No. 8 spots between 2000 and 2014. That was the final 12 months it held the underside spot among the many publics and likewise the 12 months it began its shopping for binge with the acquisition of DCH Auto Group. Lithia hit No. 5 in 2015, No. 4 in 2016 and No. 3 in 2018.
Lithia handed Penske Automotive Group Inc. for the No. 2 spot in 2021.
C.J. Moore and Mark Hollmer contributed to this report.