Koons Automotive, DC’s largest dealership, being acquired by Fortune 500 company

Written by:
Jeff Clabaugh
September 8, 2023

Jim Koons Automotive will be acquired by Ashbury Automotive Group for an undisclosed sum, though the deal is one of the most sizeable combinations in auto retail history, according to the companies.

Jim Koons Automotive is the largest auto dealership in the Baltimore and D.C. region, with 20 dealerships, 29 franchises, six collision centers and 2,500 employees. Koons had $3 billion in revenue last year.

Duluth, Georgia-based Ashbury Automotive, a Fortune 500 company, operates 138 dealerships and 32 collision centers. It had $15.4 billion in 2022 revenue.

Koons Ford was founded in Falls Church, Virginia, in 1964 by John Koons. Son Jim Koons took over the company in 1973.

Koons is among top dealerships in the nation for volume sales of Toyota, Lexus, Mercedes, Ford, Kia, Hyundai, Volvo, Stellantis and General Motors. In 2022, its dealerships sold 61,000 new and used vehicles.

Irvine, California-based Kerrigan Advisors, which specializes in auto dealership transactions, advised Koons on the deal.

About Kerrigan Advisors

Kerrigan Advisors is the premier sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide. The firm advises the industry's leading dealership groups, enhancing value through the lifecycle of growing, operating and, when the time is right, selling their businesses. Kerrigan Advisors has represented some of auto retail's largest transactions and advised more of the largest dealership groups in the US than any other buy/sell firm in the industry. Led by a team of veteran industry experts with backgrounds in investment banking, private equity, accounting, finance and real estate, the firm does not take listings, rather they develop a customized approach for each client to achieve their personal and financial goals. In addition to Kerrigan Advisors' sell-side advisory and capital raising services, the firm also provides a suite of consulting services including growth strategy, market valuation assessments, capital allocation, transactional due diligence, open point proposals, operational improvement and real estate due diligence.

Kerrigan Advisors monitors conditions in the buy/sell market and publishes an in-depth analysis each quarter in The Blue Sky Report®, which includes Kerrigan Advisors' signature blue sky charts, multiples, and analysis for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments.—To download a preview of the report, click here.—The firm also releases monthly The Kerrigan Index™ composed of the seven publicly traded auto retail companies with operations focused on the US market. The Kerrigan Auto Retail Index is designed to track dealership valuation trends, while also providing key insights into factors influencing auto retail.—To access The Kerrigan Index™, click here.—To read the—2023 Kerrigan OEM Survey, click here.—Kerrigan Advisors also is the co-author of NADA's Guide to Buying and Selling a Dealership.

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