Profit, revenue were up but short of Wall Street forecasts.
Five-dealership purchase expands its Midwest presence.
Most categories of dealership service and parts businesses have recovered from COVID-19 shutdowns, especially customer-pay work.
The auto retailer reports sales jumped 34% in the fourth quarter and soared 51% for the year.
“We expect inventories to continue to normalize throughout the back half of 2021 and in the first part of 2022,” said Chris Holzshu, Lithia chief operating officer, in an earnings conference call.
All six of America’s big publicly traded dealership groups enjoyed year-over-year gains in F&I profit per vehicle retailed in Q3, led by record highs at AutoNation and Sonic Automotive.
The nation’s six largest publicly traded dealer groups all increased F&I profit per vehicle retailed in the second quarter, led by AutoNation’s $1,926 per copy and Lithia Motors’ segment-leading 11% improvement.
Lithia Motors has purchased Central New Jersey’s Hamilton Honda from Michael Saporito, who will remain as dealer, and former NFL linebacker Jessie Armstead.
Carvana broke into the top 10 in its first appearance on Automotive News’ list of the nation's Top 100 Used Retailers, more than doubling its output to more than 94,000 units and outpacing the Asbury, Larry H. Miller, and Ken Garff groups.
Lithia Motors’ first-quarter results include continued gains in F&I penetrations and revenue, a result the dealer group credits to its aggressive acquisition strategy.
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