Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass South Stockyards (Thursday) Market Report

Stanford, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 28, 2026

705 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 $359.91/cwt +1.58 vs last sale · ≈ $3,167/hd at 880 lb · 199 head
heavy 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $333.50/cwt -11.50 vs last sale · ≈ $3,185/hd at 955 lb · 54 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $385.37/cwt +10.51 vs last sale · ≈ $2,347/hd at 609 lb · 34 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 705 1,348 1,153
Feeder cattle 632 1,271 1,056
Slaughter cattle 67 66 96
Replacement cattle 6 11 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Thursday: Feeder and yearling steers steady, Feeder and yearling heifers steady to 3.00 higher, Good demand for feeder and yearling classes. Slaughter cows 2.00-4.00 higher, 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
360 fancy 360 1 517.50 $517.50 $1,863 -69.05
425–430 428 2 472.50–482.50 $477.47 $2,044 —
467–485 471 5 475.00–497.00 $492.47 $2,320 +7.47
500–535 value added 524 9 482.50–510.00 $492.52 $2,581 -11.85
555–572 563 13 440.00–462.50 $443.63 $2,498 -10.49
585 value added 585 1 505.00 $505.00 $2,954 +21.66
609–630 value added 614 8 397.00–442.50 $429.01 $2,634 +16.39
625 625 1 390.00 $390.00 $2,438 —
625–630 fancy 627 13 450.00–470.00 $465.38 $2,918 -3.11
680 value added 680 1 397.50 $397.50 $2,703 -5.30
655–694 681 14 365.00–390.00 $385.37 $2,624 -2.13
735–740 738 2 342.50–360.00 $351.28 $2,592 —
754 value added 754 25 369.00 $369.00 $2,782 —
775 775 1 350.00 $350.00 $2,712 -4.24
800 800 1 337.50 $337.50 $2,700 —
869–896 value added 880 199 353.00–364.75 $359.91 $3,167 +0.98
955 value added 955 54 333.50 $333.50 $3,185 -11.50
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320 320 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,280 —
440 440 1 440.00 $440.00 $1,936 —
560 560 4 380.00–435.00 $393.75 $2,205 -38.75
775 775 1 330.00 $330.00 $2,558 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 fancy 275 2 505.00 $505.00 $1,389 —
320 320 1 470.00 $470.00 $1,504 -10.00
375–395 385 2 480.00–490.00 $484.87 $1,867 +10.91
360–395 fancy 386 4 510.00–555.00 $538.38 $2,078 +49.58
420–430 fancy 423 4 480.00–510.00 $502.37 $2,125 +22.09
425 425 1 470.00 $470.00 $1,998 +6.67
452–480 461 7 440.00–467.50 $457.67 $2,110 +9.20
500–545 523 2 370.00–380.00 $375.22 $1,962 -24.78
500–538 value added 524 16 405.00–432.00 $424.12 $2,222 +5.38
555–598 580 13 372.50–383.00 $382.12 $2,216 -1.50
560–597 value added 591 15 397.50–405.00 $402.49 $2,379 -17.51
603–618 value added 607 25 388.00–397.50 $390.50 $2,370 +11.61
600–640 615 9 360.00–380.00 $371.12 $2,282 +29.28
660–687 675 17 365.00–382.50 $377.85 $2,550 +37.81
750–752 751 5 320.00–327.50 $323.00 $2,426 -22.04
867–895 876 3 307.50–330.00 $315.16 $2,761 -12.84
900 900 1 295.00 $295.00 $2,655 -8.00
913 913 12 337.50 $337.50 $3,081 +34.50
960 960 1 317.50 $317.50 $3,048 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
465–496 485 17 400.00–437.50 $420.49 $2,039 +6.11
580 580 1 302.50 $302.50 $1,754 -57.50
890 890 1 280.00 $280.00 $2,492 —
940 940 1 272.50 $272.50 $2,562 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
365–385 fancy 375 5 527.50–555.00 $532.85 $1,998 -10.37
390 390 2 507.50 $507.50 $1,979 +57.50
420 420 1 487.50 $487.50 $2,048 +10.49
430–440 fancy 438 4 502.50–507.50 $506.27 $2,217 +6.27
450–490 464 7 462.50–485.00 $478.33 $2,219 -0.01
520–523 522 4 445.00–460.00 $456.27 $2,382 +12.29
530 fancy 530 1 482.50 $482.50 $2,557 +2.50
565–590 571 4 447.50–470.00 $453.71 $2,591 +3.71
600 fancy 600 1 415.00 $415.00 $2,490 —
680 680 1 372.50 $372.50 $2,533 -1.75
705 705 1 372.50 $372.50 $2,626 +27.50
807 807 4 335.00 $335.00 $2,703 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
435 435 1 450.00 $450.00 $1,958 +50.00
460 460 1 450.00 $450.00 $2,070 +39.33
510–515 513 2 422.50–432.50 $427.48 $2,193 +24.98
550–595 553 13 385.00–440.00 $432.93 $2,394 +31.40
750 750 1 325.00 $325.00 $2,438 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1145–1450 1283 80-85% 17 167.00–202.50 $180.19 $2,312 -1.02
1290–1495 1393 80-85% 2 157.00–161.00 $158.85 $2,213 —
1480 1480 80-85% 1 138.00 $138.00 $2,042 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
865–1065 981 85-90% 4 155.00–161.00 $157.69 $1,547 +45.65
895–1180 997 85-90% 3 140.00–148.00 $142.45 $1,420 +30.41
1070–1160 1113 85-90% 6 174.00–189.00 $181.43 $2,019 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1640 1640 75-80% 1 164.00 $164.00 $2,690 —
1500–1890 1685 75-80% 4 180.00–204.00 $193.32 $3,257 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185–1900 1558 5 221.00–237.00 $227.44 $3,544 —
1670 1670 1 210.00 $210.00 $3,507 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
775–1140 958 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 210.00–292.50 $243.39 $2,332
1190–1285 1238 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 2 235.00–242.50 $238.61 $2,954

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1210–1330 1270 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 2,400.00–2,500.00 $2,447.64

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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.