BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. -

The chairman of Penske Automotive Group said Thursday he was pleasantly surprised at how strongly the company performed during the first quarter, as Penske enjoyed a 51.7-percent jump quarterly income.

Penske rolled in $36.4 million of income from continuing operations, up from $24 million a year ago.

The auto group reported that revenue was 15.3 percent stronger on a year-over-year basis at $2.9 billion. Moreover, crediting stronger retail new- and used-unit sales, same-store retail revenue was up 11.6 percent.

“Our first-quarter results exceeded my expectations,” said chairman Roger Penske. "I am particularly pleased with the same-store retail revenue growth generated in all lines of our business.

“Our operating results are highlighted by an improvement in our used-to-new ratio to 0.79:1; a 13.5-percent increase in same-store used vehicle retail unit sales; improving trends in our service and parts operations, including 3.4-percent growth in same-store revenues and a 63-basis-point increase in margin,” he pointed out.

Penske added: “Our U.K. business generated another quarter of outstanding operating results, highlighted by new vehicle unit sales that outperformed the overall U.K. market and a 4.1-percent increase in same-store used vehicle retail unit sales.”

Diving into some specifics, total retail unit sales were up 13.9 percent, with used sales climbing 18.1 percent and new sales up 10.8 percent. Retail unit sales climbed 17.9 percent in the U.S. and 6.3 percent internationally.

Same-store retail revenues overall climbed 11.6 percent. Same-store new-vehicle retail revenue jumped 12.5 percent, with used up 14.1 percent, F&I climbing 12.2 percent and parts/service moving ahead 3.4 percent. By region, the U.S. was up 12.7 percent and Penske improved 9.8 percent internationally.

Meanwhile, the inventory level for new vehicles stood at 42 days’ supply as of March 31, with used supply at 34 days.

Japanese Disaster’s Impact

Like many dealership groups, Penske was faced with weighing the impact of the Japanese disasters. The group’s chairman believes his company is well-positioned to adjust to the supply challenges projected for later this year.

“While our OEM partners are working tirelessly to minimize the disruption to the automotive supply chain, we expect the recently announced production cuts will impact the availability of new vehicles of certain brands later this year,” Penske shared.

“However, we believe that the diversification of the retail automotive business model, including our recurring fixed operations, which generate approximately 45 percent of our gross profit and our ability to offer a full range of used vehicles, will enable us to manage through any reduction in the availability of new vehicles caused by these unfortunate events,” he added.