U.S. dealers have cashed in on the supply chain tribulations that rocked the auto industry in 2021. Profits for the average dealership are set to smash the 2020 record, fueled by tight inventories and high per-vehicle margins.
According to the National Automobile Dealers Association, the average U.S. dealership recorded a net pretax profit of about $3.4 million through October — more than double the $1.6 million reported for the first 10 months of 2020. And it surpassed the $2.1 million in net pretax profit recorded for the average dealership for all of 2020, which itself was a record annual profit.
The average dealership's operating profit more than quadrupled in the January-to-October period to $2 million. Net pretax profit includes operating profit and the automaker incentive money paid to dealerships for complying with certain performance targets.