Sotheby’s reported consolidated sales of $7.1 billion, an 18% increase on 2024. The company achieved revenue of $1.4 billion, a 21% increase versus 2024. The house’s inaugural season at its new Breuer Building headquarters, during which the house broke the record for the most expensive work of Modern art sold at auction, $236.3m for Klimt’s Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer (1914-16), which proved a welcome shot in the arm for the global art trade. This landmark sale shattered previous benchmarks; it will serve as a definitive role model for many years to come. By eclipsing the previous records for Modernist masters, the Klimt result has effectively recalibrated market expectations and signalled a robust resurgence in ultra-high-net-worth collector confidence after several seasons of cautious cooling.
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“In the second half of 2025, early market momentum accelerated into broad-based strength across categories and regions. It was a record second half for Sotheby’s, marked by the highest bidder demand we have ever experienced,” said Charles F. Stewart, Chief Executive Officer, Sotheby’s. “Beyond the encouraging market backdrop, we opened our stunning New York galleries at the Breuer, adding to our recent openings in Paris, Hong Kong and Zurich. We also deepened our commitment to the Middle East by hosting inaugural auctions in Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia, and expanded into new areas of our business, including Sotheby’s Media. These achievements reflect the extraordinary talent and dedication of our global team, whose expertise continues to deliver exceptional results for our clients. Encouragingly, we are seeing signs that these positive trends continue in early 2026.”
The company also reported improved profitability, with Adjusted EBITDA of $363 million. This reflects a 26% increase over the prior year and marks the company’s second-highest Adjusted EBITDA in Sotheby’s history. These results reflect a strengthening market environment and the company’s ongoing focus on client experience, audience growth and engagement, and specialist expertise. The company reduced net debt to $818 million, excluding real estate and Sotheby’s Financial Services, down 27% from the prior year.
“We enter 2026 in a strong capital position with our lowest debt level in six years and ample liquidity,” said David Kownator, Chief Financial Officer, Sotheby’s. “The $1 billion equity investment we received in 2024 was an affirmation of the strength of our business. Since that time, we have made significant progress toward further reducing debt and strengthening our balance sheet. In particular, we have amended and extended our existing Revolving Credit Facility and sold our property at 1334 York Avenue, significantly reducing our overall interest expense.”
As outlined in the company’s December 2025 release, Sotheby’s achieved all-time high bidding levels throughout the year. They saw demand from new and younger bidders, with 35% of bidders being first-time participants at a Sotheby’s auction. The increased momentum during the year drove Sotheby’s best second half in company history for consolidated sales and revenue. The company built an increasingly robust pipeline throughout the year and continuing into 2026, with more high-quality works coming to market, reinforcing confidence in continued market strength. Sotheby’s sold the most valuable collections of the year in each region, as well as the most valuable fine art collection globally for the sixth time in seven years.
At the end of 2025, Sotheby’s Financial concluded its highly successful five-year partnership with Alexander Klabin and Ancient. During this partnership, the company grew its portfolio by more than $1 billion, expanded its product suite to include collectable car loans, pioneered securitising art loans, and tripled the business’s profitability. In late January 2026, Sotheby’s Financial Services completed a new securitisation issuance under its groundbreaking program launched in 2024, comprising $900 million of notes backed by art-secured loans and, for the first time, collectable car–secured loans. The transaction was significantly oversubscribed, reflecting strong investor demand.
*Sotheby’s Consolidated financials are inclusive of Sotheby’s Global Fine Art and Luxury divisions, Sotheby’s Financial Services and the company’s real estate portfolio. Fiscal 2025 results included in this press release are preliminary, unaudited and subject to change. Adjusted EBITDA is a key measure of the company’s core operations and profitability, used for financial and operational decision-making. The percentage figures shown are calculated from the exact underlying figures.
Top Photo: Courtesy Sotheby’s