Asbury Automotive Group Inc

Good day and welcome to the Asbury Automotive Group Q1 2019 earnings call. Today's conference is being recorded. At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Mr. Mappetoni. Please go ahead, sir.

Thanks, operator, and good morning, everyone. Welcome to Asbury Automotive Group's first quarter 2019 earnings call. Today's call is being recorded and will be available for replay later today. The press release detailing Asbury's first quarter results was issued earlier this morning and is posted on our website at asburyauto.com. Participating with us today are David Holt, our President and Chief Executive Officer, John Hartman, our Senior Vice President of Operations, and Sean Goodman, our Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. At the conclusion of our remarks, we will open the call up for questions, and I will be available later for any follow-up questions you might have. Before we begin, I must remind you that the discussion during the call today is likely to contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements other than those which are historical in nature. All forward-looking statements are subject to significant and actual results may differ materially from those suggested by the statements. For information regarding certain of the risks that may cause actual results to differ, Please see our filings with the SEC from time to time, including our Form 10-K for the year ended December 2018, any subsequently filed quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and our earnings release issued earlier today. We expressly disclaim any responsibility to update forward-looking statements. In addition, certain non-GAAP financial measures, as defined under SEC rules, may be discussed on this call. As required by the SEC rules, we provide reconciliations of any such non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures on our website. It is my pleasure to hand the call over to our CEO, David Holton. David? David Holton Thanks, Matt.

Good morning, everyone. Welcome to our first quarter 2019 earnings call. During this quarter, we achieved record first quarter adjusted EPS of $2.20. a 14% increase over last year. Strategically, we are focused on operating our business as efficiently and effectively as possible, while at the same time investing for the future. We continue to make good progress executing on our vision to be the most guest-centric retail automotive company. Our focus is on creating an unparalleled guest experience, by transforming the way our stores operate, including staffing, training, processes, and the utilization of technology. We are piloting innovative processes that, together with new technology, save our guests time, enhance their shopping experience, and allow for a seamless transition between online and store-based interactions. At our pilot store, guests can now purchase a car in a fraction of the time that it would typically take at a traditional car dealership. In addition, we have introduced self-service kiosks in the service lane, and we are receiving excellent feedback on the speed, convenience, and transparency of the process. Very soon, guests will also have the ability to track online the progress of their car through service or repair process. further enhancing both transparency and the guest experience, while at the same time reducing the number of inbound status calls. This holistic transformation of our business will take some time to perfect and roll out across our stores. We are excited about the potential for our business. I will now hand the call over to Sean to discuss our financial performance. Sean?