The auction of almost 6,200 trucks and heavy equipment in Orlando, Florida, last week represented the largest in Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers' (TSX, NYSE:RBA) 50-year history.
The four-day auction for the Richmond-headquartered auctioneer sold more than US$190 million in equipment. It surpassed the company's previous record of US$172 million worth of equipment sold in Orlando last February.
More than 6,000 people from 71 countries registered to bid in the auction either on-site or online. The auction also broke the company's Internet-based bidding service, as more than 2,000 people used the company's rbauctionBid-Live online bidding service to buy roughly US$30 million worth of equipment.
Ritchie Bros. sold US$3.2 billion in equipment in 2007, up from US$2.7 billion in 2006. Auction sales helped the company increase annual profits to US$76 million from US$57.2 million in 2006.
Ritchie Bros. share price range during the past week: between: $73.96 and $83.83; 52-week high: $85.10; 52-week low: $60.50.