Keeneland concluded its 13-day September Yearling Sale on Sept. 25 with generally positive financial indicators and a variety of international buyers.
The auction company sold a total of 2,792 horses for a combined $272,890,500, a 3 percent drop compared with last year. The average price of $97,740 was down 4.7 percent from the 2015 auction and the median of $40,000 was down 20 percent.
The total percentage of horses failing to attain their reserve price was 26 percent, not far off from last year’s figure of 24 percent.
The auction added one day to its schedule in 2015 to expand the sale’s last book, and added one more day in 2016. Horses are organized into the catalogue’s six books based on their estimated value by Keeneland officials, with the most expensive selling at the beginning of the auction. Ever since the bloodstock market recovered from the Great Recession, auction officials at both Keeneland and its competitor Fasig-Tipton have agreed that the upper end of the market is strong, while sellers may struggle in the middle and lower markets to get horses sold at their desired prices. Indeed, economic indicators in the last two books of this year’s sale were down considerably when compared with last year.
This year’s September auction surprised experts in that trade remained strong after the glitzy Book 1, which finished up with eight yearlings selling for seven figures. One horse hit the $1,000,000 mark in Book 2, which hadn’t happened since 2011. Additionally, there were 84 horses selling for between $500,000 and $999,000, compared with 58 last year.
Bob Elliston, vice president of racing and chief operating officer of Keeneland, said strong numbers at the higher price points carried down to the rest of the catalogue.
“Many told us about the difficulty in buying,” he said. “Say, if they were targeting Book 2, I remember Aron Wellman talking about it, along with a few others, saying, ‘I can’t get these orders filled, but fortunately there’s quality stock in the next opportunity.’ They moved down to Book 3, and the Book 3s moved down to Book 4.”
Keeneland’s September sale is considered by most buyers to draw the best-pedigreed yearlings in the country, but it has held that reputation for several years now. It’s more likely the strength outside of its first book could be due to international buyers willing to hunt for good deals outside of Book 1, where many of them traditionally purchase. The perennial buying power Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum purchased more than $10.7 million worth of horseflesh, and Ireland’s Coolmore spent a total of $5.25 million on five horses.
Korean buyers continue to increase their spending, dropping just over $1 million for 33 horses, which is an increase from $765,000 spent on 23 last year. Two buyers from China drew attention: China Horse Club, an ownership and investment club based in China, showed up for a second year to buy yearlings. A separate group called Yulong investments also spent seven figures on five horses bought through the BBA Ireland.
“We’ve hired a Chinese representative to help us go through that and figure out what role we need to play and find out if China is going to be internal or external,” said Keeneland director of sales Geoffrey Russell. “Currently, they seem to be doing more outside of China than inside of China. Their racing is starting to get traction in China. It’s a huge country with lots of rich people, and we’re all very hopeful.”
China’s racing industry is still in its infancy, with very little Thoroughbred breeding stock available for breeders inside the country. Keeneland officials noted that Korean buyers came to American sales several years ago to buy in bulk with breeding in mind. Now, as the Korean Thoroughbred market prospers, buyers at Keeneland September are focusing more on quality, and are willing to pay for it. China, by contrast, seems to be sending representatives for the purpose of buying high-end stock to race in the states or in Europe while they build their infrastructure in China.
Among sellers, Nicholasville-based Taylor Made Sales was the top consignor for the 18th time since 1988, moving 282 horses for $32.8 million. Tapit, the perennially popular Gainesway stud, remained the sale’s top sire with 31 yearlings grossing $19.8 million.
The next Thoroughbred auction in central Kentucky will be Fasig-Tipton’s October Sale of yearlings Oct. 24-26.