Although no auto dealer is immune to macroeconomic risks, Asbury Automotive Group's size, focused acquisition strategy, and diverse revenue streams should allow the firm to keep growing at the expense of smaller dealers.
The firm's product mix, weighted toward import and luxury brands, brings more affluent consumers to the dealership, which partially mitigates the sales decline during cyclical downturns that auto sales typically experience. Most Clicklane digital customers are also of a higher credit quality and wealth than the company had in the past.
Bears
Customers could delay maintenance or choose a cheaper independent repair shop instead of going to the dealer for servicing an older vehicle, which would negate the technological advantage that Asbury enjoys over smaller repair shops.
Asbury Automotive Group is a regional collection of automobile dealerships that went public in March 2002. The company operates 155 new-vehicle stores and 37 collision centers. Over 70% of new-vehicle revenue is from luxury and import brands. Asbury also offers third-party financing and insurance products and its own F&I products via Total Care Auto. Asbury operates in 15 states (mostly Texas, the West, the Mid-Atlantic, and the Southeast). Asbury store brands include McDavid and Park Place in Texas, Koons in the Washington, D.C. area, and the Larry H. Miller brand in the Western US. Asbury generated $14.8 billion of revenue in 2023 and is based in the Atlanta area. The firm targets at least $30 billion of revenue sometime between 2025 and 2030.