Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass South Stockyards (Thursday) Market Report

Stanford, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, January 28, 2021

1,046 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $129.55/cwt -1.89 vs last sale · ≈ $1,121/hd at 865 lb · 189 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $124.89/cwt +17.98 vs last sale · ≈ $887/hd at 710 lb · 170 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $126.31/cwt -4.74 vs last sale · ≈ $814/hd at 644 lb · 98 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,046 1,067 1,154
Feeder cattle 1,031 1,021 1,042
Slaughter cattle 14 44 104
Replacement cattle 1 2 8

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Thursday: Feeder steers under 700 lbs 2.00-4.00 higher,over 700 lbs steady, Feeder heifers steady except 500-600 lbs they were 2.00-4.00 higher, Moderate to good demand for feeder and yearling classes. Slaughter cows 2.00-4.00 higher, No test on Slaughter bulls, Good demand for slaughter cows.

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
320–345 333 2 162.50–170.00 $166.39 $554 —
358–380 367 5 160.00–172.00 $165.41 $607 +15.41
401–445 410 12 143.00–165.00 $146.69 $601 -15.26
420–427 fancy 424 4 170.00–179.00 $174.54 $740 —
450–481 474 34 149.00–157.00 $149.64 $709 +1.47
500–548 524 17 130.00–148.00 $142.64 $747 +0.64
560–588 586 44 133.50–145.00 $134.39 $788 -1.19
610–635 627 3 128.00–132.00 $130.00 $815 +4.02
615–644 value added 629 11 135.00–138.00 $136.75 $860 +5.91
650–661 657 8 123.00–130.00 $128.63 $845 +5.13
655–676 value added 662 10 135.00–140.00 $137.72 $912 +7.22
772–777 775 4 120.00–121.00 $120.50 $934 +0.85
817 value added 817 63 133.80 $133.80 $1,093 +4.05
818–820 818 9 116.00–119.00 $118.67 $971 -1.33
860 860 3 111.00 $111.00 $955 -3.00
852–874 value added 865 186 127.40–131.25 $129.85 $1,123 -2.15
931 value added 931 63 122.50 $122.50 $1,140 —
1075 1075 1 102.00 $102.00 $1,096 -2.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355 355 1 141.00 $141.00 $501 —
407–435 416 3 125.00–131.00 $127.09 $529 —
580 580 1 121.00 $121.00 $702 -0.58
605 605 1 110.00 $110.00 $666 -2.00
795 795 2 110.00 $110.00 $874 —
965 965 1 90.00 $90.00 $868 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1145 1145 1 93.00 $93.00 $1,065 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
365–390 375 8 120.00–139.00 $134.29 $504 +5.69
400 fancy 400 3 142.00 $142.00 $568 —
415–435 423 3 126.00–135.00 $130.39 $552 -1.06
450–495 476 9 125.00–135.00 $130.13 $619 +6.82
500–503 value added 502 12 131.00–133.00 $132.50 $665 +2.50
512–524 522 6 121.00–125.00 $121.65 $635 -2.49
553–557 value added 556 19 126.50–128.00 $126.74 $705 —
550–595 574 20 119.00–125.00 $121.98 $700 +0.71
605–640 627 5 105.00–121.00 $116.32 $729 -3.00
645 value added 645 93 126.85 $126.85 $818 -8.15
650–697 676 12 106.00–120.00 $111.19 $752 +0.09
700–720 value added 710 164 123.75–127.90 $125.85 $894 —
701–737 713 6 95.00–106.00 $98.79 $704 -8.12
767–795 781 4 95.00–100.00 $97.54 $762 -12.46
806–835 812 5 95.00–96.00 $95.21 $773 +4.21
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455 455 1 110.00 $110.00 $500 -6.00
525 525 1 116.00 $116.00 $609 —
750 750 1 91.00 $91.00 $682 +7.00
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
595 595 1 101.00 $101.00 $601 —
810 810 1 70.00 $70.00 $567 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250 250 1 160.00 $160.00 $400 —
342 342 2 155.00 $155.00 $530 —
365–385 375 2 145.00–150.00 $147.57 $553 -11.79
403–421 fancy 411 7 166.00–167.00 $166.44 $684 -2.94
470 fancy 470 1 165.00 $165.00 $776 —
455–496 485 5 139.00–145.00 $142.58 $692 +2.00
505 505 3 138.00 $138.00 $697 +1.78
560–570 566 5 138.00–143.00 $141.02 $798 +13.17
608 608 3 128.00 $128.00 $778 +6.68
650–695 678 4 111.00–121.00 $116.42 $789 +11.41
850 850 2 94.00 $94.00 $799 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
322–330 326 4 130.00–132.50 $131.27 $428 —
360 360 1 130.00 $130.00 $468 —
555 555 2 90.00–110.00 $100.00 $555 -19.73
625 625 1 97.00 $97.00 $606 -9.00
665 665 1 91.00 $91.00 $605 -9.00
740 740 1 90.00 $90.00 $666 —
755 755 1 96.00 $96.00 $725 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
840 840 85-90% 1 44.00 $44.00 $370 —
1050–1085 1068 85-90% 2 56.00–60.00 $58.03 $620 +13.03
1140 1140 85-90% 1 51.00 $51.00 $581 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1490–1790 1640 75-80% 2 56.00–64.00 $60.37 $990 +9.91
1700 1700 75-80% 1 44.00 $44.00 $748 -11.00
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1310 1310 80-85% 1 57.00 $57.00 $747 +14.97
1415 1415 80-85% 1 39.00 $39.00 $552 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1325 1325 1 75.00 $75.00 $994 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1170 1170 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 74.00 $74.00 $866

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
919 919 52 95.00 $95.00 $873 —
995 995 49 98.80 $98.80 $983 —

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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.