Lithia Motors plans to not only make a significant dealership acquisition in the United Kingdom. Its pending deal also includes a fleet management platform and an ownership stake in Pinewood Technologies, which plans to bring a dealership management system to North America.
Pendragon Plc (PDG.L), a British car dealers firm, and Lithia Motors, Inc. (LAD), an automotive retailer in North America, announced on Monday that they agreed to a proposed sale by Pendragon Group Holdings Limited of Pendragon NewCo 2 Limited, which holds the company's entire UK motor business and leasing business to Lithia UK Holding Limited, a unit of Lithia Motors, for 250 million pounds.
US-based Lithia Motors could be set to take over Pendragon's dealership and leasing businesses in a £250 million deal which would leave Pinewood, Pendragon's software division, behind as a standalone entity retaining Pendragon's stock market listing.
A trading update by Pendragon has reported a "robust performance" in the first half of 2023, despite the headwinds of rising interest rates and inflation.