Highlights of yesterday’s earnings release from Sotheby’s were:

·         First half net income ($84.1 million) is second best ever
·         First half revenues increase 73% to $383.3 million
·         Aggregate auction sales of $2.2 billion, up 116%
·         Consolidated sales* of $2.4 billion, up 96%
·         Private sales of $209 million, up 6%
·         Sotheby’s sold 273 lots for $1 million or more

Dow Jones added these observations:

For the latest quarter, Sotheby’s reported a profit of $86.2 million, or $1.26 a share, up from of $12.2 million, or 18 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue jumped 68% to $281.4 million. Analysts estimated earnings of $1.06 on revenue of $242.4 million, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters. Auction sales surged 79%, but auction-commission margins fell to 18.7% from 21.3% on a change in sales mix to higher-valued items.

Sotheby’s 2Q Profit Soar On Strong Sales; Margins Decline (Dow Jones/WSJ)