13 January 2017
The UK retail automotive sector remained buoyant throughout 2016, with a consistent flow of deals reported and a near doubling of the average deal value disclosed in comparison to 2015. Once again our automotive team have had an exceptionally busy year, having been involved in 33% of the completed motor retail transactions in 2016.
Advising on both the buy and sell side, the team’s standout transaction was their advice to the shareholders of Warwick Holdings Limited t/a Drayton Group on the sale of their business to Lookers plc, one of the leading UK motor retail and aftersales service groups, for £55.4 million in cash. Other notable transactions included the sale of Spire Automotive to Group 1 Automotive for an undisclosed sum, Vertu Motors’ acquisition of Gordon Lamb Ltd for £18.7 million and the sale of Perrys’ Land Rover and Jaguar dealerships to the Rybrook Group for an undisclosed sum.
Download our PDF to view more of our 2016 automotive deals.
Our national automotive team is led by David Kendrick and Paul Daly. Between them, they have wide ranging experience in the retail motor industry and a particularly strong track record of helping sellers to achieve their longer term objectives and of selecting the right partner to ensure the successful completion of a deal. In 2015, our conversion ratio was over 92% resulting from the strength of our valuation, network, marketing and negotiation skills.
In recognition of the team’s success and quality of work they deliver to the industry, it was announced earlier this month that they have been awarded Motor Trade & Transport Advisory Team of the Year by the 2017 Corporate LiveWire Finance Awards.
With a number of deals in the pipeline, a good level of activity looks set to continue as we move into 2017. If you are looking to buy or sell a motor dealership or you are simply contemplating your options in 2017, please contact David Kendrick or Paul Daly for a no obligation, confidential discussion.
To read more about the transactional services we provide to the automotive sector, or to find details of your local UHY automotive expert, please visit our automotive corporate finance support pages.
Alternatively, if you want to find out more about the trends shaping deal activity in 2016 and our prospects for 2017, return to our blog and follow the series of posts we will be publishing over the coming weeks about transactional activity in the sector.
