The data for The Kerrigan Dealer Survey is gathered from our annual survey of auto dealers in conjunction with issuance of The Blue Sky Report®. The Kerrigan Dealer Survey is based on over 650 responses from franchised auto dealers.Please contact us if you have any questions about The Kerrigan Dealer Survey.
In order to gain insight into dealers’ perspectives on dealership valuations, Kerrigan Advisors digitally surveyed franchised automotive dealers in the US and Canada. The survey was sent to dealers in Kerrigan Advisors’ proprietary database. The survey was conducted in conjunction with the release of The Blue Sky Report® from June through September 2019.
The first ever Kerrigan Dealer Survey was designed to gauge dealer sentiment about the future value of their businesses, as well as their perspective on franchise valuations. The results of the survey found that dealers are largely optimistic about the valuation of their dealerships over the next 12 months. Of the 650 responses, 86% of dealers expect the valuation of their dealerships to remain the same or increase in value in the next 12 months.
These results are consistent with Kerrigan Advisors’ assessment of the buy/sell market. In our second quarter 2019 Blue Sky Report®, we noted that blue sky values rose slightly in the first half of the year, after three years of declines. Kerrigan Advisors believes the stabilization of industry earnings, driven by growth in high margin fixed operations and used vehicle sales, will steady blue sky values over the next 12 months, with the potential for increases in blue sky for dealerships that see earnings rise.
According to the results of The Kerrigan Dealer Survey, 26% of dealers expect the value of their dealerships to increase in the next 12 months, while only 14% expect the value to decrease. The majority of dealers surveyed believe the value of their business is going to stay the same over the next 12 months.
