Pinewood Technologies Group PLC on Friday said it has bought Lithia Motors Inc’s 51% share of its joint venture Pinewood North America LLC for $76.5 million in shares.
The Birmingham-based provider of software to the automotive retailing sector said it has agreed to buy the share of the joint venture from Lithia UK Holdings Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Oregon, US-based car dealer.
Shares in Pinewood Technologies were up 13% to 450.50 pence in London on Friday morning.
The $76.5 million will be paid by the issue of 14.6 million new shares at 386.50 pence each.
The acquisition values the joint venture at $150 million in total, which Pinewood said is supported by an independent valuation.
Pinewood also said that it will enter a five-year contract with Lithia to roll-out its software to all Lithia’s current and future sites across the US and Canada by the end of 2028 at the latest.
The company said it expects to generate around $40 million in annual recurring revenue from Lithia in North America once its platform has been fully deployed.
Upon the completion of further North America-specific applications, targeted by the end of 2028, Pinewood said it expects total annual revenue from Lithia in North America to increase to around $60 million.
Acquisition of the stake in the joint venture allows Pinewood to take complete control over its North American platform.
Pinewood said it believes the acquisition will ‘unlock broader adoption’ of its products by removing the perceived ‘competitor overhang’ from Lithia’s majority stake.
The takeover will position the company to take a ‘significant share’ of the $6.5 billion North American automotive dealer software market, Pinewood said.
It expects the acquisition to be a ‘key enabler’ of its medium-term ambition to scale in North America and deliver sustainable earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation growth.
‘We are delighted to have reached an agreement with Lithia to acquire the majority stake of the North America joint venture. The US and Canada are central to our growth strategy, and through the joint venture, we have made significant progress towards commercialising the Pinewood.AI platform for the North American market,’ said Chief Executive Officer Bill Berman.
‘Assuming full control of the joint venture will strengthen our ability to fully capitalise on the opportunities available in a key strategic growth market.’
Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.