Billionaire Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. are investing in Arizona’s lucrative auto market with the planned purchase of the Van Tuyl Group, a privately held firm that runs 28 Valley dealerships. A definitive agreement was announced Thursday.
The Van Tuyl business, with 78 dealerships spread across 10 states, will be renamed Berkshire Hathaway Automotive.
Buffett, the second-wealthiest American after Microsoft’s Bill Gates, is the chairman and chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway, a conglomerate based in Omaha, Neb. Most of his wealth, valued this week by Forbes magazine at $67 billion, derives from his Berkshire Hathaway stake.