ASBURY AUTOMOTIVE GROUP, INC. Forward-Looking Information
Certain of the discussions and information included or incorporated by reference in this report may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical in nature and may include statements relating to our goals, plans and projections regarding industry and general economic trends, our expected financial position, results of operations or market position and our business strategy. Such statements can generally be identified by words such as "may," "target," "could," "would," "will," "should," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "intend," "foresee," and other similar words or phrases. Forward-looking statements may also relate to our expectations and assumptions with respect to, among other things:
•the seasonally adjusted annual rate of new vehicle sales in
•general economic conditions and its expected impact on our revenue and expenses;
•our expected parts and service revenue due to, among other things, improvements in vehicle technology;
•our ability to limit our exposure to regional economic downturns due to our geographic diversity and brand mix;
•manufacturers' continued use of incentive programs to drive demand for their product offerings;
•our capital allocation strategy, including as it relates to acquisitions and divestitures, stock repurchases, dividends and capital expenditures;
•our revenue growth strategy;
•the growth of the brands that comprise our portfolio over the long-term;
•disruptions in the production and supply of vehicles and parts from our vehicle and parts manufacturers and other suppliers due to any ongoing impact of supply issues, including the global semiconductor chip shortage, which can disrupt our operations;
•disruptions in our operations, the operations of our vehicle and parts manufacturers and other suppliers, vendors and business partners, and the global economy in general due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, including due to any new strains of the virus and the efficacy and rate of vaccinations; and
•our estimated future capital expenditures, which can be impacted by increasing prices and labor shortages and acquisitions and divestitures.
Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual future results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such factors include, but are not limited to:
•the ability to successfully integrate the operations of the LHM Acquisition into our existing operations and the diversion of management's attention from ongoing business and regular business responsibilities to effect such integration;
•the effects of increased expenses or unanticipated liabilities incurred as a result of, or due to activities related to our acquisitions or divestitures;
•changes in general economic and business conditions, including the current inflationary environment, the current rising interest rate environment, changes in employment levels, consumer confidence levels, consumer demand and preferences, the availability and cost of credit, fuel prices and levels of discretionary personal income;
•our ability to generate sufficient cash flows, maintain our liquidity and obtain any necessary additional funds for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions, stock repurchases, debt maturity payments and other corporate purposes, if necessary or desirable;
•significant disruptions in the production and delivery of vehicles and parts
for any reason, including the COVID-19 pandemic, supply shortages (including
semiconductor chips), the ongoing conflict in
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Table of Contents •our ability to execute our automotive retailing and service business strategy while operating under restrictions and best practices imposed or encouraged by governmental and other regulatory authorities;
•our ability to successfully attract and retain skilled employees;
•our ability to successfully operate, including our ability to maintain, and obtain future, necessary regulatory approvals, for Total Care Auto, Powered by Landcar ("TCA"), our recently acquired F&I products provider;
•adverse conditions affecting the vehicle manufacturers whose brands we sell, and their ability to design, manufacture, deliver and market their vehicles successfully;
•the degree to which disruptions in our operations, the operations of our vehicle and parts manufacturers and other suppliers, vendors and business partners, and the global economy in general due to any ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic may adversely impact our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows;
•changes in the mix, and total number, of vehicles we are able to sell;
•our outstanding indebtedness and our continued ability to comply with applicable covenants in our various financing and lease agreements, or to obtain waivers of these covenants as necessary;
•high levels of competition in our industry, which may create pricing and margin pressures on our products and services;
•our relationships with manufacturers of the vehicles we sell and our ability to renew, and enter into new framework and dealer agreements with vehicle manufacturers whose brands we sell, on terms acceptable to us;
•the availability of manufacturer incentive programs and our ability to earn these incentives;
•failure of our, or those of our third-party service providers, management information systems;
•any data security breaches occurring, including with regard to personally identifiable information ("PII");
•changes in laws and regulations governing the operation of automobile franchises, including trade restrictions, consumer protections, accounting standards, taxation requirements and environmental laws;
•changes in, or the imposition of, new tariffs or trade restrictions on imported vehicles or parts;
•adverse results from litigation or other similar proceedings involving us;
•our ability to consummate planned mergers, acquisitions and dispositions;
•any disruptions in the financial markets, which may impact our ability to access capital;
•our relationships with, and the financial stability of, our lenders and lessors;
•our ability to execute our initiatives and other strategies;
•our ability to leverage gains from our dealership portfolio; and
•our ability to successfully integrate businesses we may acquire, or that any business we acquire may not perform as we expected at the time we acquired it.
Many of these factors are beyond our ability to control or predict, and their ultimate impact could be material. Moreover, the factors set forth under "Item 1A. Risk Factors" and other cautionary statements made in this report should be read and considered as forward-looking statements subject to such uncertainties. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this report. We expressly disclaim any obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained herein.
OVERVIEW
We are one of the largest automotive retailers in
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products are provided by independent third parties and TCA. The F&I products
offered by TCA are primarily sold through affiliated dealerships. As of
Our Dealerships segment revenues are derived primarily from: (i) the sale of new vehicles; (ii) the sale of used vehicles to individual retail customers ("used retail") and to other dealers at auction ("wholesale") (the terms "used retail" and "wholesale" collectively referred to as "used"); (iii) repair and maintenance services, including collision repair, the sale of automotive replacement parts, and the reconditioning of used vehicles (collectively referred to as "parts and service"); and (iv) the arrangement of third-party vehicle financing and the sale of a number of vehicle protection products. F&I products are offered by dealerships to customers in connection with the purchase of vehicles through either TCA or independent third parties. F&I revenue recorded by the Dealerships segment related to TCA products is eliminated upon consolidation. We evaluate the results of our new and used vehicle sales based on unit volumes and gross profit per vehicle sold, our parts and service operations based on aggregate gross profit, and our F&I business based on F&I gross profit per vehicle sold. Certain amounts in the financial statements may not compute due to rounding. All computations have been calculated using non-rounded amounts for all periods presented.
Our dealerships' gross profit margin varies with our revenue mix. Historically, the sales of new vehicles generally results in a lower gross profit margin than used vehicle sales, sales of parts and service, and sales of F&I products. As a result, when used vehicle, parts and service, and F&I revenue increase as a percentage of total revenue, we expect our overall gross profit margin to increase. However, recently, new vehicle gross profit margins have been above historical levels and higher than used vehicle gross margins.
Our TCA segment revenues, reflected in Finance and Insurance, net revenues are derived from the sale of various vehicle protection products including vehicle service contracts, GAP, prepaid maintenance contracts, vehicle theft assistance contracts and appearance protection contracts. These products are sold primarily through LHM Dealerships. TCA's F&I Revenues are supplemented with investment gains or losses and income earned associated with the performance of TCA's investment portfolio.
Our TCA segment gross profit margin can vary due to incurred claims expense and the performance of our investment portfolio. Certain F&I products may result in higher gross profit margins to TCA. Therefore, the product mix of F&I products sold by TCA can affect the gross profits earned. In addition, interest rate volatility based on economic and market conditions outside the control of the Company, may increase or reduce TCA segment gross profit margins as well as the fair market values of certain securities within our investment portfolio. Fair market values typically fluctuate inversely to the fluctuations in interest rates.
Selling, general, and administrative ("SG&A") expenses consist primarily of fixed and incentive-based compensation, advertising, rent, insurance, utilities, and other customary operating expenses. A significant portion of our cost structure is variable (such as sales commissions) or controllable (such as advertising), which we believe allows us to adapt to changes in the retail environment over the long-term. We evaluate commissions paid to salespeople as a percentage of retail vehicle gross profit, advertising expense on a per vehicle retailed ("PVR") basis, and all other SG&A expenses in the aggregate as a percentage of total gross profit. Commissions expense paid by TCA to our affiliated dealerships and reflected as F&I Revenue in our Dealerships segment is eliminated upon consolidation.
Our continued organic growth is dependent upon the execution of our balanced automotive retailing and service business strategy, the continued strength of our brand mix and the production and allocation of desirable vehicles from the automobile manufacturers whose brands we sell. Our vehicle sales have historically fluctuated with product availability as well as local and national economic conditions, including consumer confidence, availability of consumer credit, fuel prices and employment levels.
In addition, our ability to sell certain new and used vehicles can be negatively impacted by a number of factors, some of which are outside of our control. Manufacturers continue to be hampered by the lack of availability of parts and key components from suppliers, such as semiconductor chips, which has impacted new vehicle inventory levels and availability of certain parts. We cannot predict with any certainty how long the automotive retail industry will continue to be subject to these production slowdowns or when normalized production will resume at these manufacturers.
The seasonally adjusted annual rate ("SAAR") of new vehicle sales in the
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We had total available liquidity of
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