3:01 pm, February 11, 2020
PENDRAGON has sold its Californian Chevrolet dealership – but for some £700,000 less than planned.
Last August, it announced that it was offloading the Puente Hills showroom for approximately £17.2m to Scott Biehl – the operator of a privately owned dealership. However, today it was revealed that the deal had fallen through, for unspecified reasons, with the Nottingham-based motor retailer announcing that the buyer would be JBR Automotive Inc instead – at a ticket price of £16.5m.
In a statement released via the London Stock Exchange, Pendragon – which was founded in 1989 and operates the Evans Halshaw and Stratstone brands – said the transaction was completed yesterday.
It added that it was in line with its programme of shedding its US motor group.
The group sold two Jaguar Land Rover dealerships in California for £60m in May last year. It also sold its sole US-based Aston Martin dealership to US Auto Trust in July 2018 for £3.1m.
The company is in the middle of a huge restructure as it looks to claw its way back from making a multi-million-pound loss last year. It has shut 22 of its 34 CarStores and cut some 300 jobs.
The group is also still searching for a new chief executive following Mark Herbert’s departure last June after serving less than three months in the role. In addition, it remains without a permanent chairman, with Bill Berman continuing to serve in an acting capacity after being appointed last September to replace Chris Chambers.
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