What Are the Most Important Factors in Getting a High Price for a Sale Yearling?

Buyers look at various factors–pedigree, conformation, and racing performance of siblings–when considering the purchase of a Thoroughbred yearling. In order to find out the influence of size on sale price, this study considered size as a factor in sale price for horses sold at the 2003 and 2004 Keeneland September Yearling Sales.

Body weight, wither height, and body condition score measurements were taken in late August and early September for 630 yearlings to be sold. Session and sale price were recorded and correlated to price. The yearlings were from 23 farms.Sale prices (or last bid for horses not sold) were used to divide the horses into two groups based on whether the horse sold above or below the session’s median price. Further division was made by gender. Sold and unsold yearlings were also compared. Body weight was significantly greater in both colts and fillies that received bids above their session median. Wither height was not significant for colts, but for fillies, those with greater wither height sold better. Horses that did not sell tended to be shorter than horses listed as sold. In summary, yearlings that commanded bids higher than the median price of the session in which they were sold tended to be heavier and taller, but not fatter, than yearlings receiving bids below the session’s median price.

This report of KER’s 2005 research was published in Proceedings of the 19th Equine Nutrition and Physiology Society Symposium.