Sale of the top selling brand in San Antonio and Houston highlights buyers continued interest in leading franchises in high-growth markets; transaction represents the 17th franchise sold by Kerrigan Advisors in Texas in the last 12 months
SAN ANTONIO & HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kerrigan Advisors, the premier sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide, represented the Toomey family in the sale of Alamo Toyota in San Antonio, Texas to Shottenkirk Auto Group and Tejas Toyota in Houston, Texas to Vaughan Automotive. With the completion of these transactions, Kerrigan Advisors has represented on the sale of 47 Toyota/Lexus dealerships since 2014 (14 in the last 12 months) and 17 Texas-based franchises in the last year, making the firm the leading sell-side advisor in the state.
“My family is proud of our legacy of successfully representing Toyota in the great state of Texas for over five decades,” said John Toomey, Co-Owner, Alamo Toyota and Tejas Toyota. “We are incredibly grateful for the years of loyalty and support we’ve received from the Houston and San Antonio communities, as well as our employees and our customers. While the time was right for our family to sell our stores, it was certainly a difficult decision. We will greatly miss the business and our business family and look forward to seeing the dealerships thrive under new ownership with the Shottenkirk and Vaughan organizations.”
“This was a bittersweet decision for our family to sell; however, we were very grateful to be working with Kerrigan Advisors whose sensitivity to our needs matched their incredible strategic expertise in the industry,” said Richard Toomey, Co-Owner, Alamo Toyota and Tejas Toyota. “Our family has been avid readers of The Blue Sky Report® for many years and chose Kerrigan Advisors for their leading Toyota and Texas transaction experience, as well as their reputation for exceptional client service. True to form, Kerrigan Advisors surpassed our expectations. We feel very fortunate to have chosen Kerrigan Advisors to represent us on this once-in-a-generation sale process and would recommend them to any dealer family considering a sale.”
Texas is the largest, auto retail market in the Southern US, and ranks as the most economical state in the country in which to do business. Toyota is the #1 selling brand in both Houston and San Antonio, which are two of the four anchor metropolitan areas in Texas, and both are among the top ten fastest growing cities with two million+ populations. Given its high sales per rooftop, impressive growth and strong economy, Texas is the #2 most requested state by dealership buyers today according to Kerrigan Advisors.
“The Toomey family owned some of the most valuable dealerships in Houston and San Antonio and we were honored to be chosen to work with them to ensure their transaction was a success. It was critical that we fulfill each of their objectives for the sale and are proud to say that we were able to do so,” said Erin Kerrigan, Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “We are confident that their long-standing reputation of service and positive imprint on their communities will continue in the hands of both these buyers. Thank you to the Toomey family for entrusting me and my team to shepherd the sale process from beginning to a successful outcome.”
Toyota franchises are highly sought-after due to their superior sales per franchise, strong fixed operations and robust profitability. In Kerrigan Advisors’ 2023 Dealer Survey, 93% of respondents expect the value of the Toyota franchise to increase or remain the same next year, the highest in the survey for the 5th consecutive year. Additionally, 98% of Kerrigan Dealer Survey respondents have a high or moderate level of trust in Toyota, making it the most trusted brand by dealers. Toyota also ranks the #1 brand requested by buyers in Kerrigan Advisors’ proprietary Buyer Database of 1,000+ buyers nationwide.
“Toyota is the #1 brand in the industry and Texas is the #2 most requested state by buyers today, leading to valuation premiums and robust buyer demand,” said Ryan Kerrigan, Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “As identified in Kerrigan Advisors’ 2023 Annual Blue Sky Report, while valuations are trending down for most franchises, import and luxury franchises in top growth markets are the exception. They continue to command strong valuations, in part because many are retaining pandemic-level earnings because of the growth dynamics in their markets. In light of all these factors, we were proud to help the Toomey family navigate the complexities of the strong buyer demand for their dealerships, and achieve a premium valuation.”
Susan White of White, Starling & Osterman was legal counsel to the Toomey family. George M. Taylor III of Burr & Furman was legal counsel to Shottenkirk Auto Group. Eric Prigden of Underwood & Roberts, PLLC was legal counsel to Vaughan Automotive.
Kerrigan Advisors is the leading sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide. Since its founding in 2014, the firm has led the industry with the sale of over 280 dealerships representing $9 billion in client proceeds, including the third largest transaction in auto retail history – the sale of Jim Koons Automotive Companies to Asbury Automotive Group. The firm advises the industry’s leading dealership groups, enhancing value through the lifecycle of growing, operating and, when the time is right, selling their businesses. Led by a team of veteran industry experts with backgrounds in investment banking, private equity, accounting, finance and real estate, Kerrigan Advisors does not take listings, rather they develop a customized sales approach for each client to achieve their personal and financial goals. In addition to the firm’s sell-side advisory services, Kerrigan Advisors also provides a suite of consulting and investor services including growth strategy, market valuation assessments, capital allocation, transactional due diligence, open point proposals, operational improvement and real estate due diligence.
Kerrigan Advisors monitors conditions in the buy/sell market and publishes an in-depth analysis each quarter in The Blue Sky Report®, which includes Kerrigan Advisors’ signature blue sky charts, multiples, and analysis for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments. To download a preview of the report, click here. The firm also releases monthly The Kerrigan Index™ composed of the seven publicly traded auto retail companies with operations focused on the US market. The Kerrigan Auto Retail Index is designed to track dealership valuation trends, while also providing key insights into factors influencing auto retail. To access The Kerrigan Index™, click here. To read the 2023 Kerrigan Dealer Survey, click here. To read the 2024 Kerrigan OEM Survey, click here. Kerrigan Advisors also is the co-author of NADA’s Guide to Buying and Selling a Dealership.
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