WEATHERBYS has published the 60th edition of our Bloodstock Sales Review, a must-have resource for those purchasing horses in all sections of the market, as well as breeders putting together their mating plans, whether on the flat or National Hunt.

The book provides a complete analysis of European bloodstock sales in 2024 for all foals, yearlings and older horses in Britain, Ireland, France, Germany and Italy.

It also includes foals and yearlings that were either foaled in Europe or by European-based sires at the major auctions in North America and Japan.

Furthermore, the Bloodstock Sales Review features comprehensive overviews of the trading year for Tattersalls, Goffs, Tattersalls Ireland and Arqana, as well as tables of the leading sires of 2024 by yearling average, lists of the year’s most expensive yearlings and foals, and a roll of top historical auction prices.

To mark the publication of the book, I have compiled a top 10 of the most profitable British and Irish-based yearling sires last year.

I have worked out each sires’ profitability index by dividing their 2024 yearling average by their covering fee of 2022, when the offspring in question were conceived. Here we go:

In 10th place...

Study Of Man (Deep Impact)

2024 yearling average: 51,075gns/€61,673

2022 covering fee: £12,500 (£25,000 in 2025)

Profitability index: 4.29

Study Of Man made a bright start with his first two-year-old runners in 2023, and they included Group 2 Beresford Stakes winner Deepone.

He confirmed that good impression in his sophomore season last year, when Kalpana landed the Group 1 British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes, Birthe took the Group 2 Prix Saint-Alary, and Francophone and Lingua Franca scored in Listed contests.

His third-crop yearlings, conceived at Lanwades Stud at a fee of £12,500, consequently proved popular with buyers. A total of 31 lots were sold for a profitability index of 4.29.

Five made six-figure sums, led by the full-brother to Group 3 runner-up Kinesiology bought by Stroud Coleman Bloodstock from Staffordstown for 260,000gns.

In ninth place...

Nathaniel (Galileo)

2024 yearling average: 61,318gns/€74,042

2022 covering fee: £15,000 (£20,000 in 2025)

Profitability index: 4.29

Barely a year goes by without Nathaniel coming up with a Group 1 star. In 2024 it was Irish Oaks heroine You Got To Me (sold for 4,800,000gns in December) who joined the Newsells Park Stud stalwart’s roll of honour, which already contains Channel, Desert Crown, Enable, God Given, Lady Bowthorpe, Mutamakina, Poptronic and Quickthorn.

For all that, Nathaniel hasn’t always been the most commercially popular sire. It appears he has the market’s firm respect now though, with 25 lots by him bred off a fee of £15,000 sold last year making a profitability index of 4.29. Blandford Bloodstock bought the most expensive one, a Newsells Park-consigned colt out of the listed-winning Siyouni (Pivotal) mare Sequilla, for 300,000gns.

In eighth place...

Night Of Thunder (Dubawi)

2024 yearling average: 271,929gns/€328,354

2022 covering fee: €75,000 (€150,000 in 2025)

Profitability index: 4.38

Night Of Thunder has dazzled the industry with high strike-rates of winners and stakes winners since his first two-year-old runners appeared on the track in 2019. He took another step forward last year when he was represented by Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes hero Economics, unbeaten Group 1 Fillies’ Mile winner Desert Flower and eye-catching Group 3 Albany Stakes scorer Fairy Godmother.

Those results caused a bit of a bunfight for his yearlings, who were bred at Kildangan Stud at a fee of €75,000. His 66 lots who changed hands last year did so for an average of 271,929gns (€328,354), headed by a full-sister to unbeaten Group 3 winner Ombudsman bought by Sackville Donald from Ballyhimikin Stud for 900,000gns.

It is unusual for a sire standing at that level of the market to return a profitability index that competes with much cheaper options.

In seventh place...

Tasleet (Showcasing)

2024 yearling average: 21,142gns/€25,529

2022 covering fee: £5,000 (now at stud in India)

Profitability index: 4.44

Tasleet managed to sire champion sprinter Bradsell and Group 1 Prix Jean Romanet runner-up American Sonja in spite of standing at Nunnery Stud at chickenfeed fees, so it seems a shame for British and Irish breeders that he was sold to stand at Star Born Stud in India last year.

His small penultimate European crop, conceived at a fee of just £5,000, happened to include a very well-bred colt in the half-brother to Gimcrack Stakes winner Cool Hoof Luke, who was sold by Moyfinn Stud to Amanda Skiffington for £350,000 at Doncaster. That drove the sire’s average for 27 lots sold to 21,142gns (€25,529), resulting in an excellent profitability index of 4.44.

In sixth place...

Blue Point (Shamardal)

2024 yearling average: 156,323gns/€188,760

2022 covering fee: €40,000 (€100,000 in 2025)

Profitability index: 4.72

Blue Point looks like the next big thing in the stallion ranks, with his first crop having yielded last year’s Group Irish 2000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes hero Rosallion, Group 1 British Champions Sprint victor Kind Of Blue, and top sprinter Big Evs, and his second crop containing Group 2 scorer Sky Majesty. The price of his services at Kildangan Stud has therefore been hiked this year, but his third crop of yearlings were conceived at only €40,000, meaning lots of big profits for his supporters. He had 73 lots sell for an average of 156,323gns (€188,760), making a profitability index of 4.72. Henry Lascelles bought the most expensive one, a filly out of the winning Cityscape (Selkirk) mare Roseau City, for 725,000gns.

In fifth place...

Territories (Invincible Spirit)

2024 yearling average: 48,085gns/€58,062

2022 covering fee: £10,000 (now at stud in India)

Profitability index: 5.05

Territories confirmed himself a useful accomplice to breeders on a budget by delivering Group 1 winners Lazzat, Regional and Rougir, as well as Group 1 Derby runner-up Hoo Ya Mal, from inexpensively bred early crops.

However, like Tasleet, he is now standing in India, at Poonawalla Stud from this year, in his case.

The son of Invincible Spirit’s third-last crop, conceived at Dalham Hall Stud at a fee of £10,000, was responsible for 36 lots who sold for an average price of 48,085gns (€58,062), making a profitability index of 5.05. It must be pointed out, though, that those figures were skewed by his biggest seller, the full-brother to Group 2-placed Masseto who sold to Sumbe for 750,000gns, making more than 500,000gns in excess of his next most expensive lot.