Kerrigan Advisors Represents Atlanta-Based Hennessy Automobile Companies in Sale – 3rd Largest Transaction in Industry History

Kerrigan Advisors led the sale of the 62-year-old leading Atlanta luxury dealership group, including 10 dealerships representing Lexus, Porsche and Jaguar Land Rover, to Group 1 Automotive, cementing the firm’s position as the most active buy/sell advisor on high-value dealership transactions.

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kerrigan Advisors, the leading sell-side advisor to auto dealers nationwide, is pleased to announce the sale of its client, Hennessy Automobile Companies, one of the largest family-owned luxury automotive groups in Atlanta, Georgia, to Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE: GPI), a Fortune 250 automotive retailer with 250+ dealerships in the U.S. and U.K. Group 1 acquired Hennessy’s 10 dealerships, comprising Lexus (2), Porsche (2), Jaguar Land Rover (3), Honda, Cadillac, Ford and Lincoln, in a transaction estimated to be the third-largest in auto retail history based on blue sky value.

Per Group 1’s public filings, the transaction closed on October 19, 2026, and is valued at approximately $1.3 billion inclusive of blue sky, real estate and operating assets (including $1 billion in blue sky, a record for a 10-dealership group). The Hennessy dealerships generate $1.7 billion in annualized revenue, or roughly $170 million per dealership, more than double the national average. In 2025, the group retailed over 22,000 vehicles.

Robert Hennessy, founder of Hennessy Automobile Companies, began his career in the Northeast after serving in World War II, working in General Motors’ Motors Holding division. He later moved to Georgia, where he opened the second Cadillac store in Atlanta in 1964. Over six decades, three generations of the Hennessy family grew the business into Metro Atlanta’s leading luxury automotive retailer, becoming an original U.S. Range Rover dealer, opening the first Land Rover Center in the U.S. in Alpharetta, and becoming an original Lexus dealer in 1990 and the second Porsche dealer in Georgia in 2001, with the largest Porsche store in the U.S. at the time. In 2024, Hennessy celebrated its 60th year in the automobile business and opened Porsche Atlanta Northwest.

“It was a tremendous honor to represent the Hennessy family and lead this historic transaction,” said Ryan Kerrigan, Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “For 62 years, Hennessy has set the standard for luxury automotive retail in Atlanta. In choosing us to lead this sale, the Hennessy family entrusted us with far more than a business – they entrusted us with a legacy six decades in the making. Seeing that legacy find the right home with Group 1, a company that values the Hennessy name, its employees and its customers, is exactly the outcome we worked toward. We are grateful to the Hennessy family and proud of what our team achieved together.”

“When my father, Robert Hennessy, opened our first store in 1964, he built it on a simple belief: take care of your people and your customers, and everything else will follow,” said Peter Hennessy, President of Hennessy Automobile Companies. “For 62 years, that belief has guided our family. I am deeply grateful to every Hennessy employee, whose dedication made this company what it is, and to our Atlanta customers who trusted us with their vehicles and their families. When it came time to choose the next steward of this legacy, Group 1 was the perfect match. They share our customer-focused philosophy and respect our people, and I could not be more confident in the hands our dealerships are in.”

Peter Hennessy added: “We first worked with Kerrigan Advisors on a smaller divestiture a year ago, so when it came time to sell the entire business, there was no question who we would call. The team brought extraordinary care and attention to every phase, treated our family’s business as if it were their own, and their dedication to a professional, well-run process led to a terrific outcome for our family. I could not have imagined a more positive and impactful experience working with an advisor on a transaction of this size and importance to our family. To Ryan Kerrigan and the entire Kerrigan Advisors team, thank you for your counsel over the years and for delivering an outcome that exceeded every expectation.”

Hennessy is the dominant luxury retailer in the Atlanta market. In 2025, the group sold one out of every two Porsche, Lexus and Jaguar Land Rover new vehicles retailed in the Atlanta MSA. Hennessy includes the #6 Porsche dealership and the #7 Land Rover dealership in the U.S., the nation’s top-ranked Jaguar dealership, and three of the four Land Rover franchises in the Atlanta market. With 70% of its dealerships representing top luxury franchises, Hennessy ranks first for luxury franchise composition among the top 150 Southeast dealership groups and is among the top 100 largest private dealership groups in the U.S. by new unit volume.

“Our strategy focuses on premium brands in attractive growth markets,” said Daryl Kenningham, President and Chief Executive Officer at Group 1 Automotive. “This acquisition expands our presence in the Atlanta market. The Hennessy family has a tremendous reputation in Atlanta, and we feel privileged to welcome this world-class business and its employees to Group 1. We also thank Kerrigan Advisors for the professionalism and care they brought to this process.”

“The Kerrigan Advisors team was organized, responsive and well prepared at every phase, from our first conversations through closing, which allowed both sides to stay focused on a seamless transition for Hennessy’s employees and customers. It was a pleasure working with the entire Kerrigan Advisors team,” said Pete DeLongchamps, Senior Vice President of Group 1 Automotive.

Atlanta is the sixth-largest MSA in the U.S. and the fastest-growing MSA and largest luxury vehicle market in the Southeast, with a 21% luxury vehicle market share. The Hennessy acquisition expands Group 1’s Atlanta presence from five to 15 dealerships, making Atlanta the company’s second-largest market based on revenue behind Houston and its ninth market in the U.S. with five or more stores.

“The Hennessy transaction embodies what we are seeing across the buy/sell market,” said Erin Kerrigan, Founder and Managing Director of Kerrigan Advisors. “In our Second Quarter 2026 Blue Sky Report, we recorded a record 462 transactions in the trailing twelve months, the vast majority by buyers already operating in the markets they acquired in. Buyers are targeting top franchises that add to their existing regional market share, expecting that scale, combined with efficiencies from AI, will drive significant future earnings growth. Add the premiums high-growth Southeast markets command and a dominant luxury franchise portfolio, and it is clear why Hennessy was such a coveted platform. Atlanta and Hennessy represent the kind of scale and quality the largest auto retail consolidators are seeking and competing aggressively for.”

The transaction includes Porsche North Atlanta, Porsche Atlanta Northwest, Lexus of Atlanta, Lexus of Gwinnett, JLR Buckhead, Land Rover North Atlanta, Land Rover Gwinnett, Honda of Woodstock, Hennessy Cadillac and Hennessy Ford Lincoln, all in Metro Atlanta.

With this transaction, Kerrigan Advisors has sold more than 470 franchises, generating $11 billion in proceeds for its sell-side clients. The firm is the most active boutique investment bank in auto retail and has achieved the most sale proceeds per transaction of any buy/sell advisory firm, a track record it attributes to its exclusive focus on dealership sell-side representation.

“We are honored by the recognition our firm has earned across the industry and by the trust our clients continue to place in us, and this transaction is a testament to that work,” said Ryan Kerrigan. “Congratulations to the Hennessy family and team, Group 1 and the entire Kerrigan Advisors team, as well as Holland & Knight, Hill Ward Henderson and Vinson & Elkins, on the conclusion of this momentous transaction. Bringing a deal of this size and significance to a close took exceptional effort from everyone involved, and we are proud to have been part of it.”

Holland & Knight served as legal counsel to Hennessy. J.P. Morgan Securities LLC served as exclusive financial advisor, and Hill Ward Henderson and Vinson & Elkins LLP served as legal advisors, to Group 1.

About Kerrigan Advisors

Kerrigan Advisors is the leading sell-side advisor and thought partner to auto dealers nationwide. Since its founding in 2014, the firm has led the industry with the sale of more than 470 franchises generating more than $11 billion in client proceeds, including three of the largest transactions in auto retail history – the sale of Jim Koons Automotive Companies to Asbury Automotive Group, Leith Automotive to Holman, and Hennessy Automobile Companies to Group 1 Automotive. The firm advises the industry’s leading dealership groups, enhancing value through the lifecycle of growing, operating and, when the time is right, selling their businesses. Led by a team of veteran industry experts with backgrounds in investment banking, private equity, accounting, finance and real estate, Kerrigan Advisors is the only firm in auto retail exclusively dedicated to sell-side advisory, providing its clients with the assurance of a conflict-free approach.

Kerrigan Advisors monitors conditions in the buy/sell market and publishes an in-depth analysis each quarter in The Blue Sky Report®, which includes Kerrigan Advisors’ signature blue sky charts, multiples and analysis for each franchise in the luxury and non-luxury segments. To download a preview of the report, click here. The firm also releases monthly The Kerrigan Index™ composed of the seven publicly traded auto retail companies with operations focused on the U.S. market. The Kerrigan Auto Retail Index is designed to track dealership valuation trends, while also providing key insights into factors influencing auto retail. To read the 2025 Kerrigan Dealer Survey, click here. To read the 2026 Kerrigan OEM Survey, click here. Kerrigan Advisors is also the co-author of NADA’s Guide to Buying and Selling a Dealership. Additionally, Kerrigan Advisors publishes a podcast, Beyond Blue Sky – A Kerrigan Conversation, where Kerrigan Advisors’ clients and industry leaders share the mindset, strategy and personal stories behind a once-in-a-generation transaction.