Lockheed buys Terran Orbital; CPA firm acquired; Alliance facilities among best.

The FTC sued Asbury Automotive Group, alleging that three of its dealerships in Texas charged Black and Latino customers higher prices and routinely added services to customers' contracts without their consent. Up to 75% of customers of Asbury's David McDavid Ford dealership in Fort Worth, and Honda dealerships in Irving and Frisco, reported being charged without their permission for services, according to the FTC. Asbury said it rejects the allegation and will contest the lawsuit. The company said it verified through a Freedom of Information Act request that the FTC did not receive any consumer complaints about McDavid dealerships between 2019 and late spring of 2024.

Business Facilities has released its 2024 rankings. Taking the No. 2 spot in the industrial parks category is 27,000-acre AllianceTexas. The master-planned mixed-use community is currently home to 574 companies. Within AllianceTexas, the Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport is ranked as #19 in the U.S. for cargo operations, moving 2.5 billion pounds of cargo during 2023. The airport serves as a regional air hub for Amazon, FedEx, and UPS Ground.

The CJ Group has acquired Gandy, Calverley & Co., a CPA firm based in Fort Worth. Gandy has been in business more than 42 years.

Lockheed Martin is acquiring Terran Orbital, its long-time partner in the satellite world for $450 million. Lockheed has been Terran Orbital’s largest customer, having used the small-sat startup’s satellites in low Earth orbit for data relay and missile warning/tracking.

Walmart is ending drone deliveries made with partner DroneUp in Phoenix, Salt Lake City and Tampa because the services in those cities weren’t sustainable, according to Axios. Currently, it costs about $30 to use a drone to deliver a package, but DroneUp wants to bring the cost down to less than $7. Following the cuts, there will only be 15 Walmart locations (11 in D-FW) where you can take advantage of DroneUp’s delivery program. Walmart earlier this year announced plans to expand drone delivery to 1.8 million residents in the D-FW area. It's partnering with Google-backed Wing and Zipline in addition to DroneUp.

The University of North Texas Health Science Center is offering free training and up to $1,500 in incentives to community groups to learn how to use naloxone, the drug that can reverse opioid overdoses. UNTHSC is using funds awarded to the city after settlements from lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies and drug distributors.

TV personality and restaurateur Guy Fieri visited Fred's Texas Cafe in 2009 for Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. According to The Dallas Morning News, Fieri was back recently at Fred’s, this time for spinoff show Triple D Nation. The episode will air on the Food Network August 23.

Obra Capital has partnered with the Solera Auto Finance Corp. of Irving and re-branded it as Arra Finance. Kenneth Wardle remains as CEO and Chief Revenue Officer.

A report out of Israel says American Airlines has not resumed flights there since the beginning of the Iron Swords War, and the company's flights have been removed from its system until April 2025. There are no direct flights to or from Israel available for booking on the company's website or through its reservation center for the winter months.

Highlights from the July housing report from the Greater Fort Worth Association of Realtors:

• Home prices continued their upward climb in Fort Worth. In July, the median home price was $347,153 – a 6 percent increase year over year and a high point for 2024. In Tarrant County, that number was $362,250, a 2.3 percent increase.

• Although prices are up compared to 2023, they have yet to return to the highs of the summer of 2022 when inventory was about one month. Today, inventory in Fort Worth is 3.6 months, and 3.4 months in Tarrant. 

• Days on the market increased to 44 days in Fort Worth and 42 days in Tarrant County, both of which are 8 days more than July 2023.

According to The Dallas Morning News, Felipe Armenta will open a fourth location of Pacific Table in 2025 in The Sinclair, a downtown Dallas tower that just completed a $300M conversion. The West Coast-themed restaurant has locations in Fort Worth, Las Colinas, and Southlake.

Google said it will invest $1B to expand its data center operations in Texas, bringing its total investment to $2.7B. It has a campus in Midlothian and is building a 285,000-square-foot data center in Red Oak, south of Dallas. 

HomeToGo’s 2024 list of the 10 most in-demand affordable summer destinations identified Destin, Florida as No. 1. The ranking was determined based on searches carried out on HomeToGo.com from January 1 to April 30 with a check-in date between June 20 and September 22. Only destinations with a median price per night of under $200 were considered. See the complete list here.

A record 128,000 millionaires are expected to move to a different country this year. The U.S. is pegged to be a top destination, adding ~3,800 in 2024, making it the second-most popular destination for the world’s wealthiest people. The UAE (Arab Emirates) takes the top spot largely because of tax incentives. 

The number of homes across the U.S. priced at over $1M has hit an all-time high, according to the Wall Street Journal. Redfin found that 8.5% of U.S. homes have an estimated value of $1+ million — up from 7.6% last year and 4% before Covid hit.

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Snippets:

• BNSF Railway was honored this month by the Texas Veterans Commission for its dedication to hiring veterans.

• Wall Street stocks had their best week of the year last week.

Announcements: 

• KAI Enterprises: Hires Amanda Harrier as communication specialist.

• City of Fort Worth: Names Kacey Bess to lead neighborhood services department.

• Legacy Capital: Names Jerry Abrahams as CEO and President.

• Mouser Electronics: Names Tom Busher SVP Global Sales and Service.