Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass South Stockyards (Monday) Market Report

Stanford, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, December 16, 2024

219 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Blue Grass South Stockyards (Monday) report →

heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $231.17/cwt -10.08 vs last sale · ≈ $1,552/hd at 671 lb · 14 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $252.48/cwt +12.48 vs last sale · ≈ $1,863/hd at 738 lb · 14 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $313.48/cwt +43.65 vs last sale · ≈ $1,641/hd at 524 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 219 467 183
Feeder cattle 195 362 134
Slaughter cattle 24 94 49
Replacement cattle — 11 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Monday: Feeder steers steady, Feeder heifers steady to 3.00 higher, Good demand for feeder classes. Slaughter cows 1.00-3.00 lower, Slaughter bulls steady, Good demand for slaughter classes.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 fancy 340 1 352.50 $352.50 $1,198 —
420 fancy 420 1 317.50 $317.50 $1,334 -9.33
490 fancy 490 1 312.50 $312.50 $1,531 -1.22
500–545 value added 514 6 290.00–320.00 $309.95 $1,593 +16.60
525 525 1 260.00 $260.00 $1,365 -20.00
575 value added 575 1 292.50 $292.50 $1,682 -2.18
585–595 590 2 270.00–277.50 $273.72 $1,615 -2.71
645 value added 645 1 267.50 $267.50 $1,725 +9.84
650–651 value added 651 9 265.00–281.00 $277.12 $1,804 +10.09
655 655 1 257.50 $257.50 $1,687 —
730–744 value added 738 14 247.50–254.00 $252.48 $1,863 —
810 810 1 232.50 $232.50 $1,883 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
681 681 3 200.00 $200.00 $1,362 +10.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285 fancy 285 1 305.00 $305.00 $869 —
335 fancy 335 1 312.50 $312.50 $1,047 +25.48
375–386 fancy 383 4 285.00–320.00 $311.44 $1,193 +4.50
400 400 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,000 +1.40
430–437 fancy 436 5 295.00–305.00 $303.03 $1,321 +32.15
458–495 fancy 467 9 270.00–300.00 $292.81 $1,367 +22.23
520–535 528 2 240.00–255.00 $247.39 $1,306 —
520–545 value added 540 5 262.50–277.50 $268.42 $1,449 -5.66
555–595 572 3 240.00–252.50 $244.93 $1,401 +12.43
585–590 value added 588 9 260.00–262.50 $260.83 $1,534 +4.83
600–640 value added 628 6 242.50–255.00 $244.51 $1,536 —
650–684 671 11 220.00–235.00 $227.17 $1,524 +12.17
665–685 value added 672 3 245.00–247.50 $245.85 $1,652 -4.15
820 820 1 212.50 $212.50 $1,742 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 1 227.50 $227.50 $717 +7.50
635 635 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,334 +20.00
756 756 3 200.00 $200.00 $1,512 +22.50
935 935 1 165.00 $165.00 $1,543 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 222.50 $222.50 $879 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315–330 fancy 326 7 345.00–402.50 $383.42 $1,250 +83.42
350–387 fancy 375 4 332.50–350.00 $343.33 $1,287 +28.23
420 fancy 420 1 362.50 $362.50 $1,522 +44.45
440 440 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,320 +27.50
450–470 fancy 457 7 302.50–335.00 $312.71 $1,429 +15.75
490 490 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,323 -9.85
505–526 fancy 523 12 302.50–325.00 $316.90 $1,657 +25.51
530 530 1 272.50 $272.50 $1,444 +5.74
555 555 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,498 +4.07
565–595 fancy 575 4 290.00–307.50 $297.40 $1,710 +19.90
665 fancy 665 1 252.50 $252.50 $1,679 —
705 fancy 705 1 247.50 $247.50 $1,745 +7.50
780 780 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,560 -22.50
865 865 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,557 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
500 500 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,225 +8.70
585–590 588 2 207.50–210.00 $208.74 $1,227 -19.92

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1035–1460 1296 80-85% 5 105.00–111.00 $109.22 $1,415 +0.63
1290–1340 1315 80-85% 2 93.00–98.00 $95.55 $1,256 +4.55
1295–1400 1324 80-85% 4 75.00–76.00 $75.49 $999 -15.51
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
995 995 85-90% 1 76.00 $76.00 $756 —
905–1085 1022 85-90% 3 90.00–100.00 $94.92 $970 —
1050 1050 85-90% 1 137.50 $137.50 $1,444 +43.29
1075 1075 85-90% 1 110.00 $110.00 $1,182 -6.73
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1845 1845 75-80% 1 120.00 $120.00 $2,214 —
1955 1955 75-80% 1 102.00 $102.00 $1,994 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1440 1328 2 131.00–135.00 $133.17 $1,768 —

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Reading this report

What does "Medium and Large 1" mean?

USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle scores — common across the Southeast.

What is $/cwt?

Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at $450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per cwt but less per head.

Why are some prices per head?

Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a $/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News — federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the official USDA document at the top of the page.