Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass South Stockyards (Thursday) Market Report

Stanford, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 13, 2021

1,641 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 $131.32/cwt +6.82 vs last sale · ≈ $1,149/hd at 875 lb · 305 head
light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $128.42/cwt +6.76 vs last sale · ≈ $1,190/hd at 927 lb · 184 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $134.28/cwt +5.89 vs last sale · ≈ $850/hd at 633 lb · 100 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,641 1,426 1,983
Feeder cattle 1,551 1,385 1,914
Slaughter cattle 84 41 68
Replacement cattle 6 — 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Thursday: Feeder steers under 600 lbs 1.00-3.00 higher,over 600 lbs 3.00-6.00 higher, Feeder heifers under 600 lbs steady,over 600 lbs 2.00-4.00 higher, Good demand for feeder and yearling classes. Slaughter cows 2.00-3.00 higher, Slaughter bulls 3.00-5.00 higher, 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
215 fancy 215 2 201.00 $201.00 $432 —
245 245 1 187.50 $187.50 $459 —
290 290 1 182.00 $182.00 $528 —
331 331 3 149.00 $149.00 $493 -4.00
365–392 386 14 153.00–171.00 $165.85 $640 —
412–440 420 6 145.00–165.00 $156.42 $657 -10.01
460 fancy 460 8 170.00–173.00 $172.63 $794 —
450–495 477 20 149.00–169.00 $164.77 $786 +22.59
505–535 fancy 523 8 154.00–159.00 $155.27 $812 —
500–548 528 10 139.00–153.00 $143.62 $758 -3.99
550 fancy 550 9 157.00–160.00 $157.33 $865 —
585–590 588 2 135.00–145.00 $140.02 $823 +10.02
601–640 value added 615 17 147.00–154.00 $150.01 $923 —
630–645 642 5 131.00–140.00 $136.62 $877 +4.98
650 value added 650 7 153.00 $153.00 $994 —
650–695 665 3 128.00–138.00 $131.48 $874 -4.61
717 value added 717 16 134.00 $134.00 $961 -9.90
705–740 723 2 125.00 $125.00 $904 +5.28
755–775 762 10 119.00–126.00 $123.10 $938 +3.20
809 value added 809 62 134.90 $134.90 $1,091 —
860–897 value added 875 304 128.50–134.00 $131.36 $1,149 +6.67
895 895 1 120.00 $120.00 $1,074 +7.00
916–939 value added 927 184 126.80–130.85 $128.42 $1,190 +6.76
989 value added 989 51 119.00 $119.00 $1,177 +1.72
1015 1015 1 106.00 $106.00 $1,076 —
1044 value added 1044 51 111.75 $111.75 $1,167 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 1 135.00 $135.00 $418 —
370 370 2 146.00 $146.00 $540 +25.00
410–420 415 2 130.00–142.00 $136.07 $565 —
450–470 463 4 110.00–136.00 $123.42 $571 -6.58
500 500 1 126.00 $126.00 $630 -8.00
550 550 2 130.00 $130.00 $715 —
650 650 1 121.00 $121.00 $786 —
820–830 823 3 104.00–111.00 $108.65 $894 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205–240 223 2 131.00–141.00 $135.61 $302 —
245 fancy 245 1 158.00 $158.00 $387 —
265–290 278 2 139.00–145.00 $142.14 $395 +7.14
300–345 311 4 130.00–145.00 $140.84 $438 -11.69
357–390 364 15 136.00–154.00 $147.73 $538 +1.92
402 fancy 402 10 155.00 $155.00 $623 +1.00
410–445 422 13 128.00–147.00 $135.76 $573 -1.77
460–492 480 34 130.00–149.00 $145.03 $696 +5.00
502–537 527 26 125.00–139.00 $133.38 $703 -3.39
549 value added 549 12 141.00 $141.00 $774 —
550–595 573 27 125.00–139.00 $132.39 $759 -1.88
600–645 615 15 111.00–128.00 $123.12 $757 +2.18
636 value added 636 85 136.25 $136.25 $867 +6.87
650–695 663 19 110.00–125.00 $123.19 $817 +5.20
674 value added 674 75 134.90 $134.90 $909 —
715 value added 715 78 134.00 $134.00 $958 +12.14
705–735 721 4 103.00–116.00 $109.98 $793 +0.48
871–880 873 4 105.00–107.00 $106.50 $930 +17.50
905 905 1 94.00 $94.00 $851 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 1 115.00 $115.00 $374 —
367 367 2 123.00 $123.00 $451 —
405–445 423 4 121.00–125.00 $123.25 $521 —
470–480 478 4 102.00–121.00 $107.68 $515 —
520–542 534 4 112.00–121.00 $118.52 $633 +1.55
550–575 564 5 115.00–124.00 $121.00 $682 -0.53
640 640 1 105.00 $105.00 $672 -1.00
660–665 663 3 92.00 $92.00 $610 —
705 705 2 90.00–95.00 $92.50 $652 —
770 770 2 98.00 $98.00 $755 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–380 370 3 140.00–150.00 $145.45 $538 -20.55
405–435 421 9 145.00–168.00 $154.69 $651 -6.91
460–487 476 5 137.00–153.00 $147.03 $700 +8.03
500–545 538 12 140.00–154.00 $145.74 $784 +1.48
550–575 565 12 130.00–149.00 $137.14 $775 -1.01
600–638 622 10 122.00–135.00 $128.79 $801 +2.16
652–685 671 17 120.00–131.00 $127.41 $855 +4.82
740–745 743 2 105.00–116.00 $110.52 $821 -2.80
780 780 2 114.00 $114.00 $889 —
815–827 825 11 105.00–107.00 $106.64 $880 -0.36
942 942 7 99.00 $99.00 $933 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380 380 1 135.00 $135.00 $513 -10.00
420 420 1 141.00 $141.00 $592 —
515–520 518 2 120.00–123.00 $121.51 $629 +1.51
555–595 580 7 118.00–126.00 $123.27 $715 +4.38

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
880–1180 997 85-90% 14 56.00–62.00 $59.46 $593 —
1040–1135 1083 85-90% 3 51.00–55.00 $53.68 $581 —
995–1160 1112 85-90% 13 63.00–72.00 $66.66 $741 -1.68
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1170–1460 1293 80-85% 18 64.00–76.00 $68.93 $891 —
1200–1425 1313 80-85% 2 63.00 $63.00 $827 +0.96
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1505–1775 1609 75-80% 4 64.00–75.00 $70.45 $1,134 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250–1380 1315 2 95.00 $95.00 $1,249 —
1125–1515 1383 4 75.00–85.00 $81.01 $1,120 —
1295–1965 1684 9 98.00–109.00 $102.36 $1,724 +18.36

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
785–1105 974 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 5 69.00–101.00 $82.84 $807

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1035 1035 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 540.00 $540.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 90.00 $90.00 $396 —
645 645 1 75.00 $75.00 $484 —
730 730 1 81.00 $81.00 $591 —

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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.