Urban Science: U.S. Auto Retail Network Narrowly Misses Record Average Sales Per Store

- Industry average dealership throughput of 965 just below 2015 record by 1 unit

- Number of U.S. dealerships and franchises remain stable

- Texas, Florida, Arizona, Massachusetts and New York top the list of states that added the most dealerships

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Feb 13, 2017, 11:27 ET

DETROIT, Feb. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Urban Science released statistics and insights today from its 2016 year end Automotive Franchise Activity Report (FAR) that indicate continued stability in the number of automotive dealerships in the United States since the end of 2015.

As of January 1, 2017, there were 18,170 dealerships (rooftops), a 0.5 percent increase from January 1, 2015 total of 18,087. The number of franchises, or brands a dealership sells, also experienced a period of stability, slightly increasing from 31,776 on January 1, 2016, to 32,011 as of January 1, 2017.

"The sales throughput for 2016 was 965 per dealership. This throughput narrowly missed setting another record level by one unit due to the stable but increasing count of dealerships in 2016," said Mitchell Phillips, Urban Science's Global Director of Data. "With the current dealership count trend as we have seen for the past several years and a stable current industry forecast, exceeding the 2016 level is questionable."

"Over the last six years, the dealership network has set a new normal pattern of stability," said Phillips. "The data shows that 96 percent of local markets had virtually no net change (+/- 1 dealership). That said, the most significant (net) dealership increases occurred in Texas, 15 dealerships; Florida, 14 dealerships: Arizona, nine dealerships: Massachusetts, eight dealerships; and New York, seven dealerships. An interesting observation is California, which is typically on the most active list, is no longer included on the most active list, demonstrating a period of stability."

About the Automotive Franchise Activity Report
Urban Science maintains a list of current new vehicle dealership and franchise information for all car and light truck brands in the United States. Compiled on a monthly basis, the census is the most reliable source of dealership statistics. The data comes from a variety of sources, including feeds from automotive manufacturers as well as phone and field verification. Urban Science has been collecting this information since 1990 and compiles a yearly analysis every February for the previous year in its annual Automotive Franchise Activity Report.

About Urban Science
Founded in 1977, Urban Science is a global retail consulting firm that takes a scientific approach to help companies identify where they should allocate resources in order to increase their market share and profitability in the most effective and efficient manner. With headquarters in Detroit, Urban Science serves its global clientele from offices in the United States, Spain, UK, Germany, Italy, France, Australia, China, Mexico, Russia, Japan, India and Brazil. For more information on Urban Science, visit www.urbanscience.com.