America’s Car-Mart Names Douglas Campbell as Next CEO, Reports Falling Profit in Q1

Douglas Campbell, president of America's Car-Mart (America's Car-Mart)

America’s Car-Mart of Rogers (Nasdaq: CRMT) said Tuesday that company President Doug Campbell would take over as CEO beginning Oct. 1.

Campbell joined America’s Car-Mart in October 2022 and will replace current CEO Jeff Williams. Williams was named CEO emeritus and will remain with the company as an advisor and member of the board.

Campbell was also named to the board of directors, which was expanded to eight members at the company’s shareholders meeting Aug. 29.

Campbell earned more than $4.7 million in fiscal 2023, which included $3.6 million in stocks and options and a portion of his stated salary of $650,000. Campbell’s salary as CEO was not released; Williams’ salary was $750,000 in 2023.

“Importantly, to reach our full potential, we have aggressively recruited key talented executives,” Williams said. “Doug is top among these new talents, and I’m very pleased that he will become CEO of America’s Car-Mart. Doug is a great leader and will take our company to the next level.”

Williams has served as CEO at America’s Car-Mart since 2016 when he replaced longtime leader Hank Henderson. Campbell served in executive positions with AutoNation and Avis Budget Group before joining America’s Car-Mart.

“I’m thrilled to have such an incredible opportunity to lead America’s Car-Mart as CEO,” Campbell said. “Jeff has led the company through a challenging environment while kicking off some of the most important initiatives in our company’s history. I look forward to building upon the momentum Jeff has put in motion and working with our team on the next chapter of growth and transformation while continuing to give back to the communities we serve.”

America’s Car-Mart reported a 69% decline in profits in the first quarter of fiscal 2024, the sixth consecutive quarter in which its profits have dropped. Income for the quarter was $4.2 million, down from $13.7 million; earnings per share was 63 cents, down from $2.07.

The results missed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of three analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 98 cents per share.

Revenue for the quarter was $368 million, an 8.6% increase from $338.8 million a year ago. America’s Car-Mart reported it had 104,734 customers, up from 96,899 a year ago.

The company sold 15,912 vehicles in the quarter, up from 15,536. The average sales price was $18,799, up from $18,065, and same-store revenue growth from the 154 locations was 8.2%, down from 21.5%.

The company spent more than $22 million in investments in 2023 on its online platform and other internal improvements.

“While our competition is struggling with access to capital, we are not,” Williams said. “Our healthy increase in sales volumes and scale, not to mention our on-going business investments, are giving us ever-increasing advantages in the marketplace.”

The Associated Press contributed information to this report.