Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Albany, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 26, 2021

261 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $145.26/cwt +9.76 vs last sale · ≈ $977/hd at 673 lb · 16 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $141.87/cwt +8.43 vs last sale · ≈ $600/hd at 423 lb · 13 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $133.41/cwt -1.59 vs last sale · ≈ $754/hd at 565 lb · 12 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 261 564 578
Feeder cattle 244 490 541
Slaughter cattle 13 58 26
Replacement cattle 4 16 11

Market comments — USDA reporter

compared to last week.Steers and heifers steady 2.00 higher on a limited test.Slaughter cows and bulls 2.00 higher on a limited test.

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
355 355 1 163.00 $163.00 $579 —
435 435 1 155.00 $155.00 $674 -2.36
450–470 460 2 150.00 $150.00 $690 +3.55
525–540 535 8 131.00–145.00 $140.41 $751 -2.63
560–595 573 6 135.00–146.00 $140.90 $807 -0.94
620 620 1 140.00 $140.00 $868 +10.50
620–648 value added 640 9 143.00–148.00 $145.11 $929 +1.45
650 650 2 125.00–139.00 $132.00 $858 —
668–695 value added 676 14 141.50–149.50 $147.15 $995 +8.15
730 730 1 122.00 $122.00 $891 -8.00
700–746 value added 738 9 131.00–136.00 $133.56 $986 —
755 755 1 126.00 $126.00 $951 +4.00
773 value added 773 9 134.50 $134.50 $1,040 —
835 835 1 126.00 $126.00 $1,052 —
896 896 4 123.00 $123.00 $1,102 —
905 905 3 119.00 $119.00 $1,077 —
980 980 5 117.00 $117.00 $1,147 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285 285 1 145.00 $145.00 $413 -10.00
335 335 1 140.00 $140.00 $469 —
445 445 1 122.00 $122.00 $543 -14.02
465 465 1 139.00 $139.00 $646 +1.00
675 675 2 116.00–117.00 $116.50 $786 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
382–387 385 4 133.00–144.00 $138.54 $533 -0.88
410–445 423 13 131.00–148.00 $141.87 $600 +8.43
460 460 1 128.00 $128.00 $589 -4.90
502–545 527 11 127.00–139.00 $136.03 $717 +5.09
550–580 559 12 120.00–139.50 $130.87 $732 +0.88
607 value added 607 2 133.00 $133.00 $807 +6.00
600–645 626 5 110.00–123.00 $117.65 $736 +2.90
650–675 662 9 116.00–122.00 $119.79 $793 +6.66
700–725 707 7 110.00–116.00 $113.14 $800 +9.14
761 value added 761 10 120.50 $120.50 $917 —
815–830 825 3 105.00–113.00 $107.68 $888 +4.68
850–890 881 7 104.00–111.50 $109.69 $966 +7.69
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 125.00 $125.00 $488 ±0.00
475–480 479 4 119.00–125.00 $121.01 $580 +3.01
555 555 1 116.00 $116.00 $644 +13.00
640 640 1 104.00 $104.00 $666 +3.00

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 155.00 $155.00 $604 -5.30
410–445 431 5 151.00–160.00 $154.76 $667 +4.95
465 465 1 140.00 $140.00 $651 -7.38
500–510 507 3 126.00–138.00 $132.71 $673 -0.64
555–575 565 12 131.00–138.00 $133.41 $754 -1.59
620–643 637 9 120.00–125.00 $124.45 $793 -5.28
650 650 1 116.00 $116.00 $754 -1.33
705–735 715 3 108.00–111.00 $109.03 $780 -3.97
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 1 124.00 $124.00 $428 —
545 545 1 124.00 $124.00 $676 +4.00
550 550 1 124.00 $124.00 $682 —
695 695 1 108.00 $108.00 $751 -0.05

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1190–1275 1233 80-85% 2 68.00–71.00 $69.45 $856 +5.02
1320 1320 80-85% 2 74.00–77.00 $75.50 $997 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
870–985 920 85-90% 3 50.00–60.00 $54.83 $504 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1480 1480 75-80% 1 68.00 $68.00 $1,006 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
575–2195 1445 3 90.00–100.00 $94.01 $1,358 —
1535 1535 1 105.00 $105.00 $1,612 —

↑ Back to top

Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1015 1015 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 640.00 $640.00
1095 1095 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 820.00 $820.00
1250 1250 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 890.00 $890.00

↑ Back to top

Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1140 1140 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,200.00 $1,200.00 —

↑ Back to top

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.