Tattersalls: December sale concludes with sizable gains

The nine-day Tattersalls December sale ended on Thursday with the final of four breeding stock sessions showcasing broodmares, and when overall results were tabulated the auction reported sizable gains in gross, average, and median compared with last year’s auction.

Overall, Tattersalls reported 1,606 lots sold during the December sale, which included mare, yearling, and foal sessions. Those horses brought a gross of 97,989,000 guineas, or about $168.1 million in U.S. funds using current exchange rates, which represented a 37 percent increase compared with the 2012 December sale in full. The final average of 61,014 guineas (about $104,680) rose 39 percent compared with last year, and the median of 25,000 guineas (about $42,890), increased 32 percent. The buyback rate was 20 percent, compared with 19 percent in 2012.

The four-day mare section of the December sale concluded with 721 lots sold for gross revenues of 62,998,500 guineas (about $101 million), which marked a 43 percent increase matched against the corresponding mare section in 2012. The average of 87,377 guineas (about $150,000) jumped 53 percent compared with last year, and the median of 28,000 guineas (about $48,000) rose 47 percent. The buyback rate remained even at 19 percent.

The mare sale includes a record 22 individual mares who sold for more than 500,000 guineas. There were five seven-figure mares, including Immortal Verse, who established a European auction record for a broodmare. The dual Group 1 winner brought 4.7 million guineas (about $8.1 million) from BBA Ireland during Tuesday’s session, which surpassed the 4.6 million guineas spent on Magical Romance during the 2006 December sale. BBA Ireland’s Adrian Nicoll signed the ticket for Immortal Verse on behalf of a new partnership established within the Coolmore Stud organization.

One day earlier, during the opening session of the mare sale, Epsom and German Oaks winner Dancing Rain sold for 4 million guineas (about $6.9 million) as the auction’s second-highest lot to John Ferguson, representing Sheikh Mohammed al-Maktoum.

BBA Ireland and Ferguson ranked first and second, respectively, on the leading buyers list at the Tattersalls December mare sale. BBA Ireland bought 20 mares for total receipts of 6,658,500 guineas (about $11.4 million), while Ferguson made only one, high-profile purchase. The Castlebridge Consignment led all consignors with 42 mares sold for 5,714,000 (about $9.8 million).

At the conclusion of the December sale, Tattersalls chairman Edmond Mahony noted that the sales company’s accumulated revenues in 2013 totaled nearly 249 million guineas (about $426.5 million) eclipsing the trade generated in 2007, when the international bloodstock market was at its pre-recession height.

The next sale scheduled at Tattersalls is the February midwinter mixed sale, set for Feb. 6-7.

For complete results, click here.