Lookers bought by Canadian firm for £465m

Buyer Alpha Auto Group owns 15 large dealership groups in North America

Lookers bought by Canadian firm for £465m
Photo: Bigstock

The dealership group Lookers, which has more than 150 outlets in the UK, has been bought by Alpha Auto Group for £465m.

Lookers shares rose by a third to 118.84p when the takeover by the Toronto-based company was announced last Tuesday, although the deal still requires shareholder approval.

It sees Alpha Auto Group, which owns 15 large dealership groups in the US and Canada, entering the UK for the first time. The company’s will spend the next year discussing potential job losses and synergies.

With the purchase complete, only two listed large car dealership groups will remain: Vertu and Pendragon.

Lookers chief executive, Mark Raban said: “Today’s offer reflects the transformational progress that has been made in recent years.

“[The deal] will create a business of greater scale, and bring together two successful businesses with complementary carmaker relationships, and a strong platform to support future growth in the UK”.

Alpha Group Auto founder Kuldeep Billan added: “With the UK auto retail market undergoing substantial change, including the adoption of new distribution models, we believe that the wider group is well positioned to navigate the current environment.

“We are deeply committed to the UK and look forward to further establishing our presence in the market over the long term.”

Source: FT

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