Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass South Stockyards (Thursday) Market Report

Stanford, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, December 15, 2022

1,685 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $176.92/cwt +4.72 vs last sale · ≈ $1,388/hd at 785 lb · 271 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $169.13/cwt -2.72 vs last sale · ≈ $1,488/hd at 880 lb · 234 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $188.23/cwt +24.50 vs last sale · ≈ $1,273/hd at 676 lb · 163 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,685 2,246 2,029
Feeder cattle 1,591 2,100 1,971
Slaughter cattle 94 144 58
Replacement cattle — 2 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Thursday: Feeder steers steady to 2.00 higher, Feeder heifers under 500 lbs 6.00-8.00 higher, over 500 lbs steady, Moderate to good demand for feeder and yearling classes. Slaughter cows 1.00-3.00 higher, Slaughter bulls steady , Moderate 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
235 235 1 173.00 $173.00 $407 -7.00
310 310 1 193.00 $193.00 $598 +23.00
368 fancy 368 3 207.50 $207.50 $764 —
405–440 429 4 171.00–193.00 $182.56 $783 -8.88
455–485 473 5 179.00–182.00 $180.98 $856 +17.31
510–547 533 18 162.00–172.00 $164.99 $879 -3.14
553–595 569 7 151.00–166.00 $161.73 $920 -4.54
600–640 617 10 145.00–161.00 $155.89 $962 -2.01
615–637 value added 637 75 170.00–179.00 $178.88 $1,139 +14.75
676 thin fleshed 676 160 188.90 $188.90 $1,277 —
670–695 685 3 147.00–156.00 $152.64 $1,046 -4.34
725–730 729 5 142.50–151.00 $149.31 $1,088 -7.36
773 773 5 145.00 $145.00 $1,121 -6.97
773–799 value added 785 266 175.90–179.00 $177.52 $1,394 +3.95
812–822 value added 817 128 169.50–177.75 $173.66 $1,419 -4.34
860 860 1 130.00 $130.00 $1,118 -21.18
859–888 value added 880 233 167.75–173.80 $169.30 $1,490 -2.98
936 value added 936 59 170.95 $170.95 $1,600 +2.20
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
425 425 1 142.50 $142.50 $606 -8.14
460 460 1 141.00 $141.00 $649 -6.20
865 865 5 100.00 $100.00 $865 —
930 930 1 107.00 $107.00 $995 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1240 1240 1 112.00 $112.00 $1,389 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 110.00 $110.00 $484 -12.50

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250–293 282 4 152.50–160.00 $154.16 $435 +17.66
300 fancy 300 1 160.00 $160.00 $480 —
307–340 328 7 137.00–151.00 $145.72 $478 +3.46
360–375 368 2 133.00–136.00 $134.53 $495 -4.27
415–440 431 7 148.00–159.00 $153.90 $663 +12.16
433–436 fancy 434 12 160.00–171.00 $163.26 $709 —
455–485 467 13 135.00–151.00 $145.27 $678 +3.01
478–489 fancy 486 15 160.00–167.50 $165.53 $804 —
500–545 519 13 130.00–146.00 $140.69 $730 +3.67
558–595 579 18 130.00–148.00 $139.60 $808 -4.67
599 value added 599 90 169.25 $169.25 $1,014 -2.50
604–630 616 21 125.00–142.00 $136.35 $840 +0.86
645 value added 645 80 164.90 $164.90 $1,064 +3.87
663 value added 663 75 164.25 $164.25 $1,089 +5.10
670 670 1 124.00 $124.00 $831 -11.11
730–735 733 2 141.00–144.00 $142.51 $1,045 +5.83
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
465 465 1 124.00 $124.00 $577 +0.34
520 520 1 125.00 $125.00 $650 +1.00
550–595 583 4 110.00–121.00 $115.13 $671 -2.26
605 605 5 113.00–120.00 $114.40 $692 +24.40
650–690 667 5 95.00–110.00 $102.88 $686 -16.12
715–735 725 2 109.00–111.00 $109.99 $797 —
805–830 821 4 84.00–106.00 $99.04 $813 —
850–870 862 3 85.00–101.00 $92.04 $793 -17.15
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
425 425 1 100.00 $100.00 $425 ±0.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
235 fancy 235 1 205.00 $205.00 $482 —
245 245 1 195.00 $195.00 $478 —
270–290 fancy 277 3 200.00–202.50 $201.63 $559 —
295 295 1 170.00 $170.00 $502 —
305–340 323 2 182.00–195.00 $188.85 $610 +28.90
380 380 5 197.00 $197.00 $749 +26.18
400–410 fancy 405 2 205.00–212.50 $208.80 $846 —
400–445 417 11 169.00–193.00 $184.31 $769 +25.56
455–485 479 8 170.00–181.00 $171.31 $821 +24.25
510–540 529 8 150.00–165.00 $158.67 $839 +4.85
550–570 558 13 142.00–157.00 $154.40 $862 -1.36
602–613 fancy 609 5 161.00–170.00 $164.56 $1,002 +3.43
600–640 614 33 135.00–153.00 $149.64 $919 -1.14
665–670 668 2 133.00–149.00 $140.97 $942 -9.38
735–740 738 2 133.00–135.00 $134.00 $989 -3.66
755–795 767 6 135.00–144.00 $141.43 $1,085 -3.57
845 845 1 131.00 $131.00 $1,107 -5.00
930 930 2 118.00 $118.00 $1,097 +8.00
955–975 965 2 122.00–124.00 $122.99 $1,187 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
385 385 1 160.00 $160.00 $616 +19.58
425–431 430 4 147.50 $147.50 $634 +11.04
455–495 476 4 139.00–153.00 $146.90 $699 +8.48
580–592 587 4 127.50–130.00 $128.37 $754 -11.63
655–660 656 4 118.00–127.00 $123.76 $812 —
750–765 758 2 112.00–120.00 $115.96 $879 -5.04

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200–1380 1282 80-85% 5 50.00–59.00 $55.13 $707 -0.06
1185–1375 1307 80-85% 13 69.00–79.00 $72.76 $951 +2.74
1245–1420 1330 80-85% 9 60.00–68.00 $63.66 $847 +0.69
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
845 845 85-90% 1 35.00 $35.00 $296 —
915–1035 983 85-90% 4 52.00–59.00 $55.58 $546 —
1100 1100 85-90% 1 71.00 $71.00 $781 +1.00
1105–1150 1128 85-90% 2 62.00–66.00 $63.96 $721 +1.27
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1525–1760 1610 75-80% 6 70.00–77.00 $74.02 $1,192 —
1555–1665 1610 75-80% 2 64.00–67.00 $65.45 $1,054 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1175–1545 1360 2 84.00 $84.00 $1,142 —
1290–1990 1543 3 94.00–101.00 $96.04 $1,482 —
1435–2220 1761 5 104.00–111.00 $106.87 $1,882 +11.70

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
615 615 1 120.00 $120.00 $738 —

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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.