John McConnell

Automotive Holdings Group has announced an unusual 12-month leadership transition under which current managing director, Bronte Howson, will become special counsel, while also getting a special cash payout and potentially early vesting of long-term performance rights.

Automotive Holdings Group has reassured shareholders that its troubled refrigerated logistics business is on the mend, after releasing a trading update that showed lower profits.

SPECIAL REPORT: The median base pay of newly appointed chief executives at listed Perth companies fell this year to $295,000, a survey by Business News has found.

West Perth-based Automotive Holdings Group has predicted the state’s automotive market will remain challenging in the short term, as the company reported a 20 per cent fall in net profit after tax in the six months to December.

Logistics and car retailer Automotive Holdings Group has acquired two dealerships in Victoria for $8.5 million plus stock and assets, in the same precinct where it is building a new Jaguar and Land Rover dealership.

Logistics and car retailer Automotive Holdings Group has bought a major stake in an east coast-based vehicle auction business for an undisclosed sum.

Perth-based Automotive Holdings Group will incur a $35 million write-down hit from the closure of some of its underperforming businesses, in response to the weak market for car retailers combined with recent regulatory changes by the corporate watchdog.

Perth-based Automotive Holdings Group has delivered a lower full-year net profit result on the back of restructures and one-off costs associated with its refrigerated logistics business.

Automotive Holdings Group has further grown its presence on the east coast with the acquisition of five franchised car dealerships in NSW for $8.5 million plus stock and assets.

SPECIAL REPORT FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY: The annual Business News remuneration survey has data and in-depth analysis on hundreds of WA company directors and executives. We identify the top earners, including the people who qualified for large bonuses and equity incentives, in some cases year after year. The survey also reveals a big jump in the number of WA people who earned incomes of $1 million or more last financial year.

Automotive Holdings Group has sold its underperforming refrigerated logistics business to Chinese conglomerate HNA Group for an enterprise value of $400 million.

John McConnell, managing director of Automotive Holdings Group, will be leaving the company at the end of the month. Martin Ward, managing director of AP Eagers which recently acquired the company, will assume executive responsibility of the merged group.