EDMONTON, AB, Oct. 31, 2022 /CNW/ - AutoCanada Inc. ("AutoCanada" or the "Company") (TSX: ACQ), a multi-location North American automobile dealership group, announced today that it has acquired Kavia Auto Body, a collision centre located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Kavia Autobody is a SGI Elite collision centre and has provided superior collision services to Saskatoon and the surrounding area for nearly 40 years. The store also maintains certifications with Tesla, GM, Ford, Kia, Stellantis, Nissan, Infiniti, Genesis, Honda, Acura, Subaru, and Hyundai. The business operates out of a state-of-the-art facility and is strategically located close to two of AutoCanada's dealerships: Dodge City Auto and Saskatoon Motor Products. This acquisition represents a continuation of the Company's goal to further expand and develop its national collision centre network to match AutoCanada's dealership network.

"The addition of this well-managed business continues the strategic expansion of our national collision presence in markets complementary to our existing dealerships," said Executive Chairman, Paul Antony. "Our focus remains on supporting our customers and OEM partners through the entire vehicle ownership lifecycle – which includes repairing vehicles by following OEM recommended repair procedures and using the recommended OEM parts to ensure the integrity of repaired vehicles. Kavia Auto Body has built a reputation for excellence and quality in servicing both domestic and imported vehicles in the Saskatoon market and we look forward to continuing its legacy into the future."

The acquired collision centre generates in excess of $5.5 million in annual revenue. The transaction will be funded from a drawdown of the Company's credit facility and is expected to be accretive to 2022 earnings.

AutoCanada is a leading North American multi-location automobile dealership group currently operating 81 franchised dealerships, comprised of 28 brands, in eight provinces in Canada, as well as a group in Illinois, USA. AutoCanada currently sells Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram, FIAT, Alfa Romeo, Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Cadillac, Ford, Infiniti, Nissan, Hyundai, Subaru, Audi, Volkswagen, Kia, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, MINI, Volvo, Toyota, Lincoln, Acura, Honda and Porsche branded vehicles. Additionally, the Company's Canadian operations segment currently operates three used vehicle dealerships and an auction business supporting the Used Digital Retail Division, the RightRide division operates 11 locations, and seven stand-alone collision centres (within our group of 22 collision centres). In 2021, our dealerships sold approximately 86,000 vehicles and processed over 800,000 service and collision repair orders in our 1,303 service bays generating revenue in excess of $4 billion.

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

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 (often, but not always, through the use of words or phrases such as "will likely result", "are expected to", "will continue", "is anticipated", "projection", "vision", "goals", "objective", "target", "schedules", "outlook", "anticipate", "expect", "estimate", "could", "should", "plan", "seek", "may", "intend", "likely", "will", "believe" and similar expressions) are not historical facts and are forward looking. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking statements with respect to, among other things, future operating results of the acquired dealerships, the successful integration of such dealerships into AutoCanada's business, and the growth of the Company's collision and F&I divisions.

The forward-looking statements included in this press release are not guarantees of future performance and should not be unduly relied upon. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections that, by their nature, forward-looking statements involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated and described in the forward-looking statements. These known and unknown risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: future operating results, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations, events that interrupt vehicle or parts supply to AutoCanada's OEMs, financial condition and liquidity and the duration of such impacts; potential changes in the regulatory and legislative environment; volatility in interest and tax rates; operating risks inherent in the automotive retail industry; and changes in general economic conditions including the capital and credit markets.

Forward-looking statements 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, actual results or outcomes may differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. In particular, in presenting its forward-looking statements, AutoCanada has made assumptions respecting, among other things the future operating results of the acquired dealerships, the successful integration of the acquired dealerships into AutoCanada's platform, the growth opportunities at the acquired dealerships and the growth opportunities for our collision and RightRide divisions.

AutoCanada cautions that the foregoing list of assumptions, risks and uncertainties is not exhaustive. The Company's Annual Information Form and other documents filed with securities regulatory authorities (accessible through the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com) describe the risks, material assumptions and other factors that could influence actual results and which are incorporated herein by reference. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof and AutoCanada assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required pursuant to applicable securities laws.

SOURCE AutoCanada Inc.