EDMONTON, April 29, 2014 /CNW/ - AutoCanada Inc. ("AutoCanada" or the "Company") (TSX: ACQ) announced today that it has signed a purchase agreement for a dealer group, as well as purchase agreements for additional unrelated dealerships outside of the dealer group.  In total, the Company has executed purchase agreements for eight dealerships, which we would expect to close at various times within the next 90 days.  All such agreements are in different stages of progress with respect to due diligence, and all are subject to Manufacturer approval which is anticipated, but is not assured.

With respect to such dealerships, the estimated aggregate results in 2013 were as follows:

• Total revenues of $422 million
• Total new vehicles retailed of 5,936
• Total used vehicles retailed of 3,538
• Total service bays of 126
  
  

The purchase multiples are consistent with recent acquisition activity.  AutoCanada has a number of financing alternatives available and anticipates financing these acquisitions through either debt or the issuance of equity or a combination thereof. 

Commenting upon this development, Pat Priestner, Chairman and CEO of AutoCanada stated that, "The Company is excited by the opportunity to add additional dealerships to the AutoCanada family, and we are working diligently with the various Manufacturers to obtain their approval, which we would anticipate over the coming four to six weeks.  In addition to these eight dealerships, we continue to pursue additional opportunities which are in various stages of progress."

About AutoCanada

AutoCanada is one of Canada's largest multi-location automobile dealership groups, currently operating 34 franchised dealerships in seven provinces and has over 1,600 employees. AutoCanada currently sells Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, Fiat, Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Cadillac, Infiniti, Nissan, Hyundai, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Audi, and Volkswagen branded vehicles. In 2013, our dealerships sold approximately 36,000 vehicles and processed approximately 364,000 service and collision repair orders in our 381 service bays during that time.

Additional information about AutoCanada Inc. is available at www.sedar.com and the Company's website at www.autocan.ca.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release are forward-looking statements and information (collectively "forward-looking statements"), within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation.  We hereby provide cautionary statements identifying important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements.  Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not historical facts and are forward-looking and may involve estimates and assumptions and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors some of which are beyond our control and difficult to predict.  Accordingly, these factors could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements.  Therefore, any such forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the factors discussed throughout this release and as contained in the Company's Annual Information Form dated March 20, 2014 which is accessible through the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE AutoCanada Inc.