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Sotheby’s 2011 Sales = $5.8bn

February 29, 2012 by Marion Maneker

Sotheby’s released it’s 4th quarter results this afternoon. The numbers are almost exactly the same as Christie’s in auction volume and private sales volume: 

 Consolidated sales up 21% to $5.8 billion

Auction sales up 14.5% to $4.91 billion

Private sales up 65% to record $814.6 million

2011 net income of $171.4 million

On the conference call, Sotheby’s CEO Bill Ruprecht touts

  • the same dollar volume of sales as “traditional competitor” with half the number of lots
  • all guarantees offset by risk sharing
  • 33% ratio of total compensation to revenues

Bill Sheridan mentions fall in commission revenue due to competitive nature of the business.

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Filed Under: General

About Marion Maneker

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