Dealership buy-sells fell during the first three months of the year, driven by a decline in acquisitions by private dealers.
At the same time, spending on U.S. dealerships by public retailers surged, led largely by Lithia Motors Inc., which has been on a buying spree.
Those patterns are revealed in two separate reports tracking dealership buy-sell activity. Both reports — the Haig Report and the Blue Sky Report by Kerrigan Advisors — show the number of acquisition deals declining during the first quarter, though their transaction counts differ.
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