America’s Car-Mart to buy Texas Auto Center dealerships

Rogers-based America’s Car-Mart Inc. will acquire the dealership assets of Texas Auto Center, a used car dealership with two Texas locations, according to a Thursday (May 2) news release. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Car-Mart, a buy-here, pay-here used car dealer, expects the deal to close in the first quarter of fiscal 2025, which started Monday (May 1). Texas Auto Center was founded in 1995 and comprises Texas dealerships in Austin and San Marcos. The deal excludes legacy finance receivables.

“The acquisition of Texas Auto Center furthers our commitment to acquisitions being a part of our growth strategy,” said Car-Mart President and CEO Douglas Campbell. “This acquisition will deliver exceptional outcomes for our customers, associates and shareholders. TAC’s high-performance culture, customer focus and strong alignment of values makes it a fantastic addition to what is an already great team.”

Car-Mart has been purchasing dealership groups since December 2019, when it announced the acquisition of Taylor Motors. Previously, Car-Mart had purchased some one-location dealerships, but the Taylor Motors deal comprised the first dealership group the company acquired. In December 2023, Car-Mart announced the acquisition of Central Auto Sales in Hot Springs. The company completed the acquisition in the third quarter of fiscal 2024, which ended Jan. 31.

According to the release, Bob and Erika Blankenship founded Texas Auto Center and will join Car-Mart. Employees of Texas Auto Center will also join Car-Mart.

“Bob and Erika are highly respected industry veterans with decades of experience delivering quality used vehicles and excellent service to their customers,” Campbell said. “We are excited to welcome them and the entire Texas Auto Center team to America’s Car-Mart.”

Vickie Judy, Car-Mart’s chief financial officer, said the company has yet to disclose the number of new employees it will add.

“We are very excited to enter into this relationship,” said Bob Blankenship. “My wife, Erika, and I have devoted nearly 30 years to building our business and have been honored to forge relationships with our customers. With the help of our dedicated associates, we have grown to two large dealerships, proudly serving the Austin metro area.”

Judy said the company will have 156 dealerships after adding these two dealerships.

“This agreement reinforces our commitment to acquisitions as a part of our growth strategy that will not only strengthen America’s Car-Mart, but the entire industry. This acquisition expands and strengthens our footprint in the Texas market,” Judy said. “We will continue to partner with experienced owner-operators to transition their businesses in a way that creates value for their customers and future growth opportunities for their associates as well as being accretive to our revenue.”

On March 8, Car-Mart reported a loss of $8.55 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2024 compared with a profit of $1.49 million in the same period last year. Revenue declined by 7.9% to $299.61 million from $325.33 million.

Shares of Car-Mart (NASDAQ: CRMT) closed Thursday at $58.55, up 30 cents or 0.52%. In the past 52 weeks, the stock has ranged between $55 and $127.96. Shares hit a 52-week low on April 16.