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AutoNation
AutoNation, Inc.
Type Public
Traded as NYSE: AN
S&P 500 Component
Industry Auto Retailer
Founded 1981 (as Republic)
April 6, 1999 (as AutoNation)
Headquarters Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Revenue increaseUS$13.8B (FY 2011)[1]
Operating income increaseUS$572M (FY 2011)[1]
Net income increaseUS$281M (FY 2011)[1]
Total assets decreaseUS$6.2B (FY 2011)[2]
Total equity increaseUS$1.9B (FY 2011)[2]
AutoNation headquarters in Fort Lauderdale

AutoNation, the largest auto retailer in the United States,[3] was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H. Wayne Huizenga,[4] also founder of Blockbuster and Waste Management.[5] The company is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The current Chairman and CEO is Mike Jackson, former CEO of Mercedes Benz North America. The current President and Chief Operation Officer is Mike Maroone; previously of Maroone Automotive Group of South Florida.

Contents

Company operations

AutoNation has 215 dealerships across the USA, and has approximately 20,000 employees. It sells 32 different manufacturer brands nationwide and outsells every other automotive retailer in the U.S. It is ranked #212 in the 2010 Fortune 500.[6] The company has a significant internet presence, offering its entire inventory for online searching.[7]

Total company revenue is as follows:

  • 54% new vehicles
  • 25% used vehicles
  • 17% parts and service
  • 3% financing and insurance
  • 1% other

Brands

Instead of supporting a national mark, AutoNation has developed a unique brand name for its dealerships in each market.

These include the following:

E-Vehicles Program

E-Vehicles Program, in partnership with Edmunds.com, identifies fuel-efficient vehicles, with 8.40 L/100km (28 miles per gallon) or deliver 10% better fuel efficiency than the average for their vehicle class.

History

AutoNation was created in 1981 as Republic Industries, Inc.,[4] a company specializing in waste disposal. H. Wayne Huizenga became Chairman of the Board in 1995.[10] Republic got into used auto sales with the purchase of Auto Nation USA in 1997,[8] followed by Car Choice Inc.[11] Republic began opening AutoNation used megastores. CarMax brought a lawsuit against Republic for copyright and trademark infringement. Republic's sales for 1995 was $5.2 billion.[10]

In 1996, Republic began purchasing new car dealerships and offering long-term contracts to owners who joined the automotive division management team. Some dealers began seeking out Republic to sell their dealerships because of the long-term contracts. In 1996, Republic built twelve AutoNation locations.[10]

In 1996, Alamo Rent A Car was acquired.[11]

In 1997, Republic continued acquisitions in the car rental business with the purchase of National Car Rental, Spirit Rent-A-Car, Value Rent-A-Car, Snappy Car Rental, and EuroDollar Rent A Car. Huizenga had Republic start consolidating operations between new and used cars and its rental companies into one operation. Acquiring six Saturn dealerships in Arizona and Florida, Republic sold the dealerships to Saturn in 1997 because they did not generate enough sales despite being a successful brand.[10] Maroone Automotive Group of Buffalo, NY and Florida was acquired in 1997 for $200 million in Republic Stock.[8]

A 2-for-1 split in the company stock was completed in 1996.

In an attempt to expand the company's electronic security division, the company offered to purchase ADT but the acquisition was called off.[10] In October 1997, Republic sold off its electronic security division after failing to expand it with the attempted-purchase of ADT.

Republic Industries offered in July 1998 an IPO of its original core waste disposal business as Republic Services. From this sale of 36% of Republic Services, Republic Industries netted $1.4 billion. While CarMax had received a $50 million jury award in its lawsuit, it was overturned during an appeal in 1998.[10] Drivers' Mart, a competitor, was purchased.[12]

The remaining 64% of Republic Services were spun off to Republic Industries shareholders in 1999.[10] The company's first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) was Steve Berrard, who resigned from the company in July 1999.[13] Mike Jackson, CEO, moved to spin off the car rental business as ANC Rental. AutoNation USA used car megastores, which lost $25 million the quarter before, were all closed down. Plans to brand all auto dealers as AutoNation are scrapped and a regional brand focus is instituted.[8]

In January 2003, Jackson is named chairman of the board replacing Huizenga.[8] On October 24, 2005, the AutoNation building in downtown Fort Lauderdale suffered significant damage due to Hurricane Wilma.[14] The company has since transferred to another nearby building.

In 2006, Mike Jackson, CEO of AutoNation announced[15] that his company would be reducing orders from General Motors, Ford and Chrysler in 2007. Jackson made the statement that the company will instead focus on selling BMW, Mercedes and Lexus vehicles due to anticipation of further market share loss by US automakers resulting in high dealer inventories. [1]

In 2009, AutoNation announced the AutoNation Payment Protection program, promising that the dealership will buy back any car at market value, should the owner lose their job.[2]

In 2011, AutoNation was the first auto retailer in the U.S. to sell a total of 8 Million vehicles.

Notes

  1. ^ a b c AutoNation (AN) annual SEC income statement filing via Wikinvest.
  2. ^ a b AutoNation (AN) annual SEC balance sheet filing via Wikinvest.
  3. ^ White, Joseph B., "One Billion Cars", The Wall Street Journal, pp. R1, April 17, 2006.
  4. ^ a b Bradsher, Keith, "Republic's Huizenga Wants to Dominate the Market", The New York Times, pp. D1, March 6, 1997.
  5. ^ Gallagher, Richard S. (2002). The Soul of an Organization: Understanding the Values that Drive Successful Corporate Cultures. Kaplan Business. p. 113. ISBN 0-7931-5780-3. 
  6. ^ Mike Maroone/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008/snapshots/10493.html Fortune 500: AutoNation, CNN Money/Fortune, accessed May 21, 2008.
  7. ^ Tucci, Christopher L.; Afuah, Allan (2001). Internet Business Models and Strategies: Text and Cases. McGraw-Hill. p. 270. ISBN 0-07-239724-1. 
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Broder-Singer, Rochelle (March 2003). "Over drive: AutoNation's founders set out to revolutionize the automotive retailing industry by sweeping up dealerships and creating a national brand. Instead, the industry changed AutoNation. In the end, it took two "car guys"— CEO/Chairman Mike Jackson and President/COO Mike Maroone—to rev up profits at the largest dealership group in the country - Cover Story". South Florida CEO. Gale Group. pp. 1–8. Archived from the original on 04 Nov, 2009. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0OQD/is_3_6/ai_112800245/. Retrieved 2009-11-04. 
  9. ^ "AutoNation benches Elway's name," Denver Post, December 1, 2006,
  10. ^ a b c d e f g "Republic Industries, Inc. Company History". Company Profiles. fundinguniverse.com. http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Republic-Industries-Inc-Company-History.html. Retrieved 2009-11-03. 
  11. ^ a b Bagli, Charles V. (November 8, 1996). "In Alamo Deal, Republic Puts More Money On Used Cars". The New York Times (New York, NY: New York Times Company): p. D1. http://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/08/business/in-alamo-deal-republic-puts-more-money-on-used-cars.html. Retrieved 2009-11-04. 
  12. ^ Evarts, Eric C. (2002-03-18). "Dealers stay in driver's seat". Christian Science Monitor (Christian Science Monitor). http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0318/p18s01-wmcn.html. Retrieved 2009-11-04. 
  13. ^ "Autonation Chief Executive Agrees to Step Down", The New York Times, July 1, 1999.
  14. ^ Hoag, Christina, and Danner, Patrick, "Creatively coping with chaos: South Florida's hurricane-worn companies are making do to keep going despite a lack of offices", The Miami Herald, October 27, 2005.
  15. ^ Chakvorti, Jui, AutoNation slowed '07 model orders: CEO, Reuters, September 12th, 2006.

Further reading

External links


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