Inchcape has sold its UK car dealerships to New York-listed Group 1 Automotive for £346m.
The sale follows a strategic review of the business announced in January this year.
The portfolio comprises 80 sites across the UK, which generate some £2bn of revenue and £49m of profit.
Group 1 has operated in the UK since 2007 and has a growing presence, with 55 dealerships in the South East and East of England.
Globally the group has a portfolio of more than 200 car dealerships.
Following completion of the deal, Inchcape said it would return £100m to shareholders and use the remaining proceeds to invest in future growth through organic investment and value-accretive acquisitions.
Duncan Tait, group chief executive at Inchcape, said: “Our UK retail business is a high-quality business, with an experienced and high-performing management team, and has been an important part of the group’s growth. With our active international expansion into higher value distribution activities, the strategic importance of the UK retail operations has become limited.“
Daryl Kenningham, president and chief executive at Group 1 Automotive, added: ”With our considerable automotive retail experience in the US and the UK, we look forward to building on Inchcape’s strong industry relationships and leveraging our expertise to support our combined operations in their next phase of growth.”
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