Highlights
AutoNation, Inc. is the country's largest retailer of cars and light trucks. Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, the firm employs approximately 26,000 people at 257 dealerships across 16 states including 68 stores in Florida. The firm claims more than $19 billion in annual revenue with profits in 2003 of $479 million. But the company's sales stumbled in the first half of 2007. Company officials attributed that to a sluggish demand for high-ticket items, prompted by a downturn in the housing market especially in Florida and California. AutoNation ranked #112 on the 2005 Fortune 500 list. In March 2007, AutoNation sold its 6 millionth vehicle. The company has continued to selectively buy new fra...
AutoNation, Inc. is the country's largest retailer of cars and light trucks. Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, the firm employs approximately 26,000 people at 257 dealerships across 16 states including 68 stores in Florida. The firm claims more than $19 billion in annual revenue with profits in 2003 of $479 million. But the company's sales stumbled in the first half of 2007. Company officials attributed that to a sluggish demand for high-ticket items, prompted by a downturn in the housing market especially in Florida and California. AutoNation ranked #112 on the 2005 Fortune 500 list. In March 2007, AutoNation sold its 6 millionth vehicle. The company has continued to selectively buy new franchises, notably the 60-year-old King Motor Company operation in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 2007. About 59 percent of its revenue comes from selling new vehicles, about 23 percent from used vehicles, about 14 percent from service and parts, and about 3 percent from financing car purchases. The operation was founded in 1996 when Toyota magnate Jim Moran and entrepreneur H. Wayne Huizenga began buying car franchises through Huizenga's Republic Industries. In 1999, they renamed the division AutoNation, Inc. The same year, the company hired Mike Jackson, a former mechanic turned Mercedes Benz executive, to be CEO. He joined Michael E. Maroone, president and chief operation officer. The company has been on a financial rollercoaster ever since. Publicly traded shares rose to around $40 in 1997, only to plunge to below $6 a share in 2001. In the fall of 2007, the share price ran about $16. Much of the company success has been attributed to repeated restructuring and streamlining. One such move included shutting down its used-car megastores, spinning off its rental car businesses, selling its outdoor advertising operation and laying off about 2,000 employees. To build customer confidence, Jackson required employees to provide clear explanations of how much customers are paying for cars, financing, insurance and other items and instituted a company-wide code of ethics. To boost revenues, AutoNation bought new-car dealerships, especially luxury car stores, and stressed repair and maintenance service, finance and insurance (which generate fees) and used cars. It cut expenses by consolidating vendors, controlling personnel costs and using the company's size to bargain for price advantages in advertising, general purchasing and obtaining capital. Huizenga stepped down as chairman in 2002, but remained on the board until 2004 when he declined to seek a seat, expressing confidence in the management at the time. He remains a major stockholder of the firm. AutoNation is deeply involved in community projects including American Red Cross, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Boys and Girls Clubs, Take Stock In Children, Habitat for Humanity, Kids In Distress, NAACP, National Council of La Raza, NCCJ, United Way, Urban League and YMCA.
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Ford undrapes latest Fusion mid-sized sedan at Detroit auto show
Ford unveiled the new version of its Fusion mid-sized sedan Monday at the Detroit auto show.
The company is looking for the vehicle to cement a complete redesign of its passenger car business. The Fusion follows new versions of the smaller Focus and...Tags: Car Engine Repair, Companies and Corporations, Nissan, Services and Shopping, Fuel-efficient Vehicles
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Investors place big bets on Buy Here Pay Here used-car dealers
Second of three parts
The J.D. Byrider used-car dealership in Visalia, Calif., sits amid a jumble of tow yards, hubcap vendors and vacant lots littered with empty beer cans. jQuery(document).ready(function(){ jQuery('div#series-box h4.last').html('...Tags: Jeff Williams, Services and Shopping, Fuel-efficient Vehicles, Personal Finance, Contracts
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Tax incentives drying up for popular hybrid cars
Los Angeles Times Staff WriterThe federal government offers tax incentives that can save consumers thousands of dollars when they purchase gas-sipping hybrid vehicles. But buyer beware: The three most popular hybrids sold in America either no longer qualify for the tax break or are...Tags: Politics, Death, Tax Credits, Internal Revenue Service, Kelley Blue Book LLC
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Hybrid car sales go from 60 to 0 at breakneck speed
Los Angeles Times Staff WriterThe Ford and Honda hybrids due out this month are among dozens planned for the coming years as automakers try to meet new fuel-efficiency standards and please politicians overseeing the industry's multibillion-dollar bailout. Unfortunately for the...Tags: Politics, General Motors Corp., Jackson (Hinds, Mississippi), Services and Shopping, Justice System
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No. 1 Rolls dealer rates special perks
Los Angeles Times Staff WriterRolls Royce normally transports new cars from Chichester, England, to Southern California by sea. But if there's a particularly impatient customer at O'Gara Coach Co. in Beverly Hills itching to plunk down $350,000 for a Phantom, Rolls has been known...Tags: Bentley, General Motors Corp., Companies and Corporations, Marketing, Honda
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Outside auto show, a stalled state
Los Angeles Times Staff WriterGeneral Motors Corp. kicked off this year's North American International Auto Show with an opulent party in a giant heated tent alongside the Detroit River. Coming on last after several other acts, Michigan's own Kid Rock took the stage, singing as a pack...Tags: General Motors Corp., Marketing, Detroit, Kid Rock, Kwame Kilpatrick
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Luncheon raises $160,000 for Women In Distress
On May 9 guests joined Women In Distress (WID) of Broward County for its sixth annual "Starfish Luncheon Presented by Wells Fargo." The event raised $160,000, which will provide 1,702 nights of shelter as well as basic needs, therapy, counseling,...Tags: Comerica Inc., Publix Super Markets Inc., Broward County, Human Interest, Bank of America Corp.
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05/28 Insider Trading
Insider Trading is a weekly report of stock transactions involving officers, directors and owners of 10 percent or more of a publicly held company. Corporate insiders historically make more economically sound decisions in trading their own company's stock...
Tags: Insider Trading, Companies and Corporations, Corporate Officers, Finance, Thomson Corporation
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Dance fundraiser helps food pantry
Marc Cannon, senior vice president of AutoNation, can do the merengue, and his cha-cha isn't too shabby either. His skills vaulted him into second place in the recent Dancing with the Stars of Broward fundraiser, which collected more than $60,000 for The...
Tags: Fort Lauderdale, Entertainment Events, Dance, Entertainment, here! (tv network)
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Local leaders hit the green to 'Swing for Kids' Sake'
On June 1 Miami Dolphins alumni Shawn Wooden and Ki-Jana Carter will host "Swing for Kids' Sake," a golf tournament benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County. The event begins with a shotgun start at 9 a.m. at the Lago Mar Country Club...Tags: Golf, Companies and Corporations, Shawn Wooden, Northern Trust Corporation, Publix Super Markets Inc.
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Ready, set, go: Salvation Army hosts 'MOST Amazing Race'
The Salvation Army of Broward County hosted its fifth annual "MOST Amazing Race" on May 5. Patterned after the CBS show "The Amazing Race," the scavenger-hunt-like race attracted teams from Palm Beach to Miami and was made up of friends, relatives,...Tags: The Amazing Race (tv program), The Salvation Army, Family
Jan 9, 2012
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May 30, 2012
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May 27, 2012
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May 25, 2012
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May 23, 2012
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May 23, 2012
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