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Demand for Thoroughbred yearlings remains strong, according to figures from Faisg-Tipton’s Kentucky Fall Yearlings auction, despite early projections suggesting breeders are slightly less active than last year.
Fasig-Tipton closed its four-day sale with slight dips compared to last year’s record figures. A total of 963 horses sold for $34,260,100, a 4 percent reduction from last year, while average price dipped 3 percent to $35,576. The median of $15,000 was up 25 percent. The rate of reserves not attained (RNA) remained steady at 22 percent.
Fasig-Tipton Photos
Boyd Browning
Last year’s total receipts and average price were records for the October sale.
“The confidence level continues to increase,” said Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning. “Five years ago, we grossed about $22 million, so it was about a 50 percent increase over a five-year period of time. Some of that is the market, but certainly, the number of horses has increased significantly. The market is always an evolution. It won't be the same in 2019 as it was in 2018. I think giving people viable options is really important to them, and certainly, the October sale is a viable option.”
Earlier this week, the Jockey Club released its report of mares bred for 2018, which summarizes the breeding activities from earlier in the calendar year. At the conclusion of the breeding season, owners of mares and stallions are required to report to the Jockey Club about whether their horse was bred for the year, and (in the case of stallions) how many times. Although a few more reports were still outstanding, figures show fewer stallions were active in the 2018 breeding season as compared to 2017 — 1,214 covered mares this year, down 9.5 percent. The number of active mares is down around 5 percent, suggesting the foal crop for next year may be down slightly.
Foal crops took a blow after the recession of the mid-2000s, plummeting from 34,358 in 2007 to 20,900 in 2017. In response to the downturn, breeders took lesser-quality mares out of production, anticipating they would struggle to sell their offspring.
As Browning often emphasizes, consignors are still struggling to move lower-quality yearlings at public auction. It seems for the moment, the increase in prices and demand in the middle market is not enough to put those retired broodmares back in action.
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The Jockey Club’s figures also showed a slight uptick in the percentage of active mares visiting stallions with large books, which could have a ripple effect in the auction market in two years.
Of the stallions receiving the most mares in a given breeding season, many are in their first or second season, when managers want to get them as many mares — and therefore as many chances to produce successful, good-looking offspring — as possible. Years three and four of a stallion’s career are often the most difficult, as their oldest foals will have barely started proving themselves on the racetrack, while other new stallions have hung out their shingles and attracted breeders’ attention. Some stallion owners take advantage of stallions’ early popularity by getting them a high number of mares and hope when their first foals appear, they will be well-received by the commercial market and create momentum going forward. If buyers don’t like their physical appearance however, breeding to large groups of mares in the first two years can result in a flooding of the market later.
One stallion in particular is finding commercial success early, however. 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah’s name appeared twice in the list of top ten prices at Fasig-Tipton. A chestnut colt by American Pharoah out of Gloat brought $310,000 for Woods Edge Farm, while another colt out of Danceinthesunlight hammered for $300,000 for consignor Denali Stud and buyer Alistair Roden Bloodstock. The buyer of the colt out of Gloat was none other than Zayat Stables, which campaigned American Pharoah during his racing days.
American Pharoah’s stud fee for the 2019 breeding season was recently set at $110,000 by Coolmore, which manages the champion’s stud career. 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify, who also retired to Coolmore’s Ashford Stud, will command a $150,000 fee in his first breeding season.
The sale’s top price came from a colt by Street Sense out of Shimmer, who brought $500,000 from Donato Lanni, agent. Lanni declined to identify the colt’s new owner. The horse was consigned by Eaton Sales.
The next public auction of Thoroughbreds in Kentucky will be Fasig-Tipton’s November Sale on November 4, which will focus on broodmares and broodmare prospects.