Sotheby's advances after rival Christie's loses contemporary art chief

Shares of art auctioneer Sotheby's (BID) are trading higher after a competitor lost its contemporary art chief. WHAT'S NEW: Sotheby's competitor Christie's announced Wednesday afternoon that Brett Gorvy is leaving the auction house after 23 years to to establish an independent art advisory business. According to the New York Times, Gorvy has long been considered the "master broker of contemporary art at Christie's." "Gorvy, the Christie's chairman and international head of postwar and contemporary art, is widely credited with fortifying the auction house's reputation for securing A+ quality work and for aggressive deal making, which allowed it to become the market leader in postwar and contemporary sales," the New York Times added in an article out following the news. According to the Times, Gorvy has been responsible for three of the highest art prices at auction, including $179.4M for Picasso's "Les Femmes d'Alger" in 2015, $170.4M for Amedeo Modigliani's "Nu Couche" in 2015, and $142.4M for Francis Bacon's triptych, "Three Studies of Lucian Freud," in 2013. PRICE ACTION: Shares of Sotheby's are up 3.66% to $40.62 per share in afternoon trading.