Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass South Stockyards (Thursday) Market Report

Stanford, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 16, 2024

1,371 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $240.42/cwt +9.09 vs last sale · ≈ $2,008/hd at 835 lb · 211 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $244.63/cwt +18.15 vs last sale · ≈ $2,141/hd at 875 lb · 161 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $241.19/cwt +8.79 vs last sale · ≈ $1,741/hd at 722 lb · 92 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,371 1,112 1,686
Feeder cattle 1,306 1,041 1,598
Slaughter cattle 65 65 88
Replacement cattle — 6 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Thursday: Feeder and yearling steers 8.00-10.00 higher, Feeder and yearling heifers 5.00-8.00 higher, Good to very good demand for feeder and yearling classes. Slaughter cows 6.00-10.00 higher, Slaughter bulls steady, Very 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
210 210 1 325.00 $325.00 $682 —
225 fancy 225 1 367.50 $367.50 $827 -22.50
265 265 1 312.50 $312.50 $828 —
385 fancy 385 1 360.00 $360.00 $1,386 -28.86
405–445 fancy 424 5 342.50–363.00 $352.98 $1,497 +23.04
427–435 430 3 323.00–331.00 $325.70 $1,401 +26.20
470 470 1 327.50 $327.50 $1,539 +19.33
504–547 value added 520 58 302.50–327.50 $316.04 $1,643 +0.18
510–540 530 9 270.00–297.50 $286.52 $1,519 +15.17
555–595 585 16 270.00–296.00 $291.99 $1,708 +7.83
587 value added 587 15 310.00 $310.00 $1,820 +8.04
612–638 value added 624 44 284.00–297.00 $293.29 $1,830 +13.13
610–640 628 10 250.00–273.00 $265.07 $1,665 —
650–697 669 12 246.00–269.00 $259.19 $1,734 +12.08
710 value added 710 4 259.00 $259.00 $1,839 +1.00
702–726 716 6 230.00–243.00 $234.12 $1,676 -10.37
750–770 753 6 230.00–247.00 $241.45 $1,818 +4.45
753 value added 753 4 251.00 $251.00 $1,890 -7.00
818–846 value added 835 206 232.00–250.00 $240.85 $2,011 +3.85
820–840 836 5 210.00–226.00 $222.86 $1,863 +2.86
850–887 875 3 219.00–228.00 $221.92 $1,942 +2.42
855–889 value added 875 158 231.50–251.50 $245.06 $2,144 +15.84
940 940 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,974 +10.00
1019–1022 value added 1020 106 219.50–223.60 $221.66 $2,261 —
1077 1077 2 191.00 $191.00 $2,057 —
1155 1155 2 194.00 $194.00 $2,241 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
435 435 1 247.50 $247.50 $1,077 +7.50
472 472 2 240.00 $240.00 $1,133 —
550–595 563 5 260.00–269.00 $263.37 $1,483 +3.37
736 736 3 221.00 $221.00 $1,627 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1205 1205 1 188.00 $188.00 $2,265 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
200 fancy 200 1 330.00 $330.00 $660 -1.61
275 fancy 275 1 322.50 $322.50 $887 -34.88
290 290 1 315.00 $315.00 $914 +15.00
320 320 1 317.50 $317.50 $1,016 +57.50
331 fancy 331 5 331.00 $331.00 $1,096 +11.40
350–365 fancy 357 4 320.00–323.00 $321.50 $1,148 —
360–390 375 10 301.00–315.00 $307.89 $1,155 +21.20
400–440 fancy 421 18 293.00–312.50 $305.15 $1,285 +12.25
444–447 446 13 271.00–280.00 $274.76 $1,225 +24.76
455–495 fancy 472 33 290.00–311.00 $300.24 $1,417 +17.78
455–492 482 6 279.00–289.00 $284.48 $1,371 +13.27
501–533 value added 512 46 273.00–295.00 $286.41 $1,466 -0.45
512–540 526 16 259.00–270.00 $264.96 $1,394 +20.51
550–585 570 17 250.00–270.00 $262.18 $1,494 +13.52
556–587 value added 572 38 280.00–281.00 $280.20 $1,603 +12.22
611–630 value added 622 16 254.00–260.00 $255.44 $1,589 -11.74
600–640 627 23 240.00–249.00 $246.27 $1,544 +1.09
650–671 value added 659 32 255.00–260.00 $258.54 $1,704 +2.53
650–675 660 5 239.00–241.00 $240.02 $1,584 -4.86
721 value added 721 82 242.00 $242.00 $1,745 +3.86
715–745 729 10 227.00–237.00 $234.57 $1,710 +15.54
751 value added 751 10 251.00 $251.00 $1,885 +19.75
760–761 761 15 235.00–237.00 $236.20 $1,797 +12.20
802–825 807 6 209.00–221.50 $219.32 $1,770 +17.32
971 971 3 201.00 $201.00 $1,952 -4.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
475 475 1 257.00 $257.00 $1,221 +28.77
501 501 3 248.00 $248.00 $1,242 +48.00
555–590 573 2 217.00–241.00 $228.63 $1,310 —
690 690 1 199.00 $199.00 $1,373 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290 290 1 312.50 $312.50 $906 —
360 fancy 360 1 367.50 $367.50 $1,323 +18.01
377–390 381 4 305.00–327.50 $318.18 $1,212 —
400–426 fancy 415 7 327.50–363.00 $334.20 $1,387 +1.70
430–435 433 2 290.00–302.50 $296.29 $1,283 -3.71
450–457 452 8 305.00–323.00 $312.14 $1,411 +22.14
450–463 fancy 461 6 329.00–351.00 $347.42 $1,602 +34.96
501–542 511 10 282.00–299.00 $292.64 $1,495 +19.30
515–540 fancy 525 7 304.00–322.50 $307.09 $1,612 -5.31
560–585 567 14 279.00–293.00 $290.44 $1,647 +11.78
600–630 615 2 240.00–250.00 $244.88 $1,506 -1.37
608–630 fancy 615 5 271.00–292.50 $276.52 $1,701 +15.57
795 795 1 229.00 $229.00 $1,821 +1.00
835 835 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,670 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1050–1430 1246 80-85% 14 120.00–143.00 $129.54 $1,614 —
1150–1390 1279 80-85% 4 116.00–118.00 $117.31 $1,500 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
945–1095 1031 85-90% 4 110.00–119.00 $115.67 $1,193 —
995–1135 1065 85-90% 2 103.00–108.00 $105.66 $1,125 -6.22
880–1185 1073 85-90% 11 122.00–142.00 $127.46 $1,368 +15.58
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1445–1825 1582 75-80% 7 135.00–140.00 $137.52 $2,176 +11.13

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1205–1600 1384 4 146.00–149.00 $147.15 $2,037 —
1490–1995 1731 5 155.00–162.00 $160.37 $2,776 —

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Beef Dairy Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 197.50 $197.50 $958 —

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Beef Dairy Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,312 —

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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.