Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Albany, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 5, 2021

296 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Blue Grass Stockyards report →

heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 steers $157.46/cwt +0.30 vs last sale · ≈ $765/hd at 486 lb · 15 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $131.98/cwt -4.91 vs last sale · ≈ $697/hd at 528 lb · 14 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 296 542 622
Feeder cattle 248 452 541
Slaughter cattle 41 76 74
Replacement cattle 7 14 7

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Steers and heifers 4.00-6.00 lower on a light test due too heavy rain and flooding.Slaughter cow and bulls 2.00 higher.

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
370–375 373 2 154.00–162.00 $158.03 $589 -9.93
405–427 420 3 152.00–155.00 $152.97 $642 -3.99
420 value added 420 3 167.00 $167.00 $701 —
465–496 486 15 145.00–164.00 $157.46 $765 +0.30
510–545 533 6 131.00–154.00 $144.40 $770 -5.07
560–580 567 9 132.00–150.00 $140.22 $795 -2.57
625 625 1 129.00 $129.00 $806 -9.72
655–695 668 4 122.00–124.00 $123.51 $825 -13.12
700–715 704 6 118.00–127.00 $121.85 $858 +0.85
750–760 755 2 114.00–115.00 $114.50 $864 +1.50
810 810 1 117.00 $117.00 $948 -3.51
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 1 147.50 $147.50 $509 —
440–445 442 3 122.00–140.00 $132.68 $586 -5.66
455–475 462 3 126.00–141.00 $132.99 $614 -8.01
515 515 1 124.00 $124.00 $639 -3.00
570 570 1 117.00 $117.00 $667 -5.98
660–675 669 4 116.00–118.00 $116.99 $783 —
730–740 735 2 104.00–109.00 $106.52 $783 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285–290 288 2 140.00–149.00 $144.46 $416 -10.27
305 305 1 145.00 $145.00 $442 -6.65
355–395 386 6 139.00–151.00 $142.68 $551 -1.97
405–435 429 9 128.00–135.00 $131.87 $566 -5.54
460–497 479 7 126.00–136.00 $132.74 $636 -3.24
505 value added 505 2 139.00 $139.00 $702 -6.00
500–545 532 12 121.00–136.00 $130.81 $696 -4.19
550–575 558 4 125.00–135.00 $132.42 $739 +1.61
630 630 1 124.00 $124.00 $781 +5.12
790 790 2 105.00 $105.00 $830 -0.98
885 885 1 100.00 $100.00 $885 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270–295 283 2 130.00 $130.00 $368 ±0.00
345 345 1 120.00 $120.00 $414 —
390 390 1 129.00 $129.00 $503 -3.00
425 425 1 110.00 $110.00 $468 -11.00
575–595 588 4 111.00–119.00 $114.97 $676 +1.78
605 605 1 94.00 $94.00 $569 -14.03
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
625 625 4 125.00 $125.00 $781 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300–315 308 2 151.00–154.00 $152.54 $470 -12.46
350–395 367 3 149.00–158.00 $154.42 $567 -5.28
460–485 473 3 145.00–151.00 $147.28 $697 -5.86
515–535 522 3 130.00–133.00 $131.97 $689 -11.13
530 value added 530 2 154.00 $154.00 $816 —
555–580 570 4 126.00–140.00 $129.56 $738 -9.73
610–647 629 4 118.00–129.00 $120.91 $761 -15.77
740 740 1 103.00 $103.00 $762 -16.33
775 775 1 101.00 $101.00 $783 -8.09
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220 220 1 137.50 $137.50 $302 —
280 280 1 134.00 $134.00 $375 —
455–490 480 4 125.00–134.00 $128.82 $618 -7.27
615–640 628 2 102.00–115.00 $108.37 $681 -8.10

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1100–1395 1175 80-85% 6 68.00–74.00 $69.26 $814 +1.53
1060–1385 1208 80-85% 15 59.00–67.00 $62.46 $755 +10.46
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
805–1080 951 85-90% 5 49.00–57.00 $54.64 $520 -5.94
840–1030 955 85-90% 3 58.00–59.00 $58.64 $560 -1.94
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1445–1770 1555 75-80% 4 62.00–66.00 $64.26 $999 —
1565–1780 1673 75-80% 2 68.00–69.00 $68.53 $1,147 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1505 1505 1 93.00 $93.00 $1,400 —
1675 1675 1 80.00 $80.00 $1,340 —
1650–2065 1817 3 99.00–103.00 $100.65 $1,829 +20.95

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1100 1100 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 690.00 $690.00

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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
855–900 878 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 2 800.00–820.00 $810.26 —

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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.