Lithia expands in Pa.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Less than a year after one of the biggest car retailers in the country acquired Baierl Automotive, Lithia Motors has expanded its reach into the Western Pennsylvania market by buying the Day Automotive Group in Monroeville.

Lithia, based in Medford, Ore., announced the acquisition for undisclosed terms on Tuesday.

“We are excited to add the Day team and their strong franchise mix to our operations in Pennsylvania,” said Bryan DeBoer, Lithia president and CEO, in the announcement.

“This acquisition rounds out our presence in Pittsburgh, adding stores in the desirable southeastern metro area to complement our locations in affluent Cranberry Township. We continue to see a robust acquisition environment and anticipate more acquisitions in the near term.”

The company said Day is estimated to generate $340 million in annual revenue.

Lithia Motors has 179 stores representing 30 brands in 18 states. It had revenue of $10.1 billion in 2017.

Lithia, founded in 1946, ranked as the fourth-largest dealership group in the nation based on unit sales of new cars in 2016, according to the latest figures from Automotive News. Day ranked No. 128.

Earlier this month, Day sold off a Toyota dealership in Pleasant Hills to Ganley Automotive Group, the biggest car dealership in Ohio.

When Lithia bought Baierl in May last year, it was the company’s first entry into Pennsylvania.

“We don’t anticipate any major changes. Obviously, Baierl has a great reputation,” Lithia chief financial officer John North said at the time, noting that the Baierl name would remain.

He said the management team operating the locations would stay with the company and said there wouldn’t be layoffs among Baierl’s employees.

An Automotive News report in late January predicted an active year for buying and selling auto dealerships as big groups seek to get bigger and smaller dealerships look to cash out of an increasingly complex business.