NEW YORK— Sotheby’s shares fell as much as 21 percent yesterday during New York Stock Exchange composite trading, Bloomberg reports. While the shares recovered at the end of day, they remain at their lowest point since July 2005.

Dana Cohen, an analyst at Bank of America, reduced third quarter profit estimates for the house after disappointing auctions in Hong Kong, including a 20th-century Chinese art sale where two-thirds of the lots went unsold.

Cohen wrote in a note to clients: “This shows that the fall-off has finally hit even the highest of the uber luxury consumer.”

Sotheby’s shares have dropped 27 percent this month, three times the percentage drop of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.