J.D. Power, a global leader in data analytics, today announced a definitive agreement to acquire Autovista Group, a leading pan-European and Australian automotive data, analytics and industry insights provider. The acquisition complements J.D. Power’s strengths in vehicle valuation and detailed vehicle specification data and analytics while broadening its footprint into the European and Australian automotive markets.
The deal creates strong value for customers of both companies by bringing together Autovista Group’s comprehensive European and Australian market intelligence with J.D. Power’s market-leading predictive analytics and valuation and customer experience datasets. These highly complementary offerings will give original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), dealers, insurers and financing companies a truly global view of critical trends influencing the industry, along with the tools they need to accurately forecast risk, capitalize on burgeoning trends and align sales strategy with real-time market dynamics.
“Precise vehicle valuations and detailed vehicle specifications are the central underpinning to every data-driven strategy in the automotive industry—from optimizing vehicle production to calculating residual values to all manner of insurance—and finance-related risk assessment and repair models, and the combined assets of J.D. Power and Autovista Group will create truly comprehensive, global valuation and forecasting solutions,” said Dave Habiger, president and CEO at J.D. Power.
“Additionally, as U.S. consumers increasingly adopt the European model of configuring and ordering a custom vehicle specification, rather than picking whatever the dealer has on the lot, Autovista’s detailed, vehicle-specific data and analytics will give OEMs critical information they need to navigate this change in consumer behavior. We are excited for the Autovista team to join J.D. Power and for the future growth opportunities we will pursue together.”
Through its five leading brands—Autovista, Eurotax, Glass’s, Schwacke and Rødboka—Autovista Group standardizes and categorizes hundreds of technical attributes for virtually every vehicle produced in the European and Australian markets, providing clients with a 360-degree view of detailed vehicle data for use in valuations, forecasts and repair estimates. In addition, its robust analytic solutions and team of experienced analysts are relied upon by stakeholders throughout the automobile industry for detailed insights and benchmarks for vehicle values and ownership, repair and replacement costs.
“The global automobile industry is undergoing a historic transformation in which an ever-increasing array of models and fuel types, volatile swings in used car values and lingering supply chain challenges are making it more difficult than ever to project future value and understand total cost of ownership,” said Lindsey Roberts, CEO at Autovista. “By pairing our leading pan-Europe- and Australia-focused datasets with J.D. Power’s robust North American and Asian market data, analytics and insights, we are creating the truly global solution the industry needs to manage through this period of radical change.”
“The addition of Autovista Group broadens our global presence allowing us to serve our customers across key global markets including North America, Europe and Asia/Australia,” said Pete Cimmet, chief strategy officer at J.D. Power. “We look forward to partnering with the Autovista team to launch innovative new products and pursue strategic add-on acquisitions in Europe and Australia.”
Autovista Group’s senior leadership and its 700 employees will continue with the company and will become J.D. Power’s automotive data and analytics platform for Europe and Australia. Lindsey Roberts will continue to lead the team as President, J.D. Power Europe reporting to CEO Dave Habiger.
Autovista Group is currently owned by Hayfin Capital Management, a leading European alternative asset management firm.
“It has been a pleasure working with CEO Lindsey Roberts and the entire Autovista team,” said Carlos Pla, portfolio manager at Hayfin. “Together, we have successfully grown the business and executed the strategy to become a purely digital play and better serve the increasingly digital automotive ecosystem. We look forward to watching the company’s continued success as part of J.D. Power.”
The acquisition of Autovista Group is expected to close by the end of 2023 and is subject to customary closing conditions as well as regulatory review and approval.
RBC Capital Markets served as exclusive financial advisor, and Kirkland & Ellis served as legal advisor to J.D. Power. TD Cowen served as exclusive financial advisor, and Macfarlanes, Cravath, Swaine & Moore, and Mishcon de Reya served as legal advisors to Autovista Group and Hayfin.
About J.D. Power
J.D. Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, J.D. Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on J.D. Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.
J.D. Power has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The J.D. Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.
About Hayfin Capital Management
Founded in 2009, Hayfin Capital Management (“Hayfin”) is a leading alternative asset management firm with c. €30 billion in assets under management. Hayfin focuses on delivering attractive risk-adjusted returns for its investors across its private debt, liquid credit and private equity solutions businesses.
Hayfin has a diverse international team of over 200 experienced industry professionals with offices globally, including headquarters in London and offices in Frankfurt, Munich, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Luxembourg, Stockholm, New York, San Diego, Singapore and Tokyo.
Further information can be found at hayfin.com.
