Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Albany, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, January 4, 2023

709 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $177.20/cwt ≈ $1,465/hd at 827 lb · 68 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $171.49/cwt -3.51 vs last sale · ≈ $1,223/hd at 713 lb · 49 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $155.19/cwt +22.80 vs last sale · ≈ $884/hd at 569 lb · 40 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 709 288 1,147
Feeder cattle 614 242 1,065
Slaughter cattle 90 37 80
Replacement cattle 5 9 2

Market comments — USDA reporter

No trend due to last weeks holiday.

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
345–349 fancy 349 10 205.00 $205.00 $715 —
395 395 2 196.00 $196.00 $774 +31.86
400 400 1 195.00 $195.00 $780 —
415–435 fancy 428 3 212.00–220.00 $217.29 $930 —
480–490 485 7 181.00–199.00 $193.04 $936 +33.04
500–540 515 14 180.00–190.00 $186.77 $962 +33.09
550–570 558 20 178.00–191.00 $187.19 $1,045 +35.20
602–645 value added 624 4 180.00–182.00 $180.97 $1,129 —
600–640 626 30 168.00–179.00 $172.93 $1,083 +20.93
650 value added 650 3 175.00 $175.00 $1,138 —
670–690 686 5 160.00–171.00 $168.05 $1,153 —
710 value added 710 42 172.50 $172.50 $1,225 -2.50
730–740 734 7 154.00–169.00 $165.43 $1,214 —
780 780 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,170 —
827 827 68 177.20 $177.20 $1,465 —
900–920 910 2 130.00–146.00 $137.91 $1,255 —
1005–1022 1016 3 133.00–134.00 $133.33 $1,355 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 171.00 $171.00 $829 —
535 535 1 165.00 $165.00 $883 —
565 565 2 166.00 $166.00 $938 —
680 680 1 154.00 $154.00 $1,047 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1345 1300 3 109.00–131.00 $118.95 $1,546 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 1 120.00 $120.00 $396 —
455 455 1 137.50 $137.50 $626 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 2 130.00 $130.00 $312 —
345 345 1 150.00 $150.00 $518 +25.00
355 fancy 355 1 168.00 $168.00 $596 —
369–385 372 16 150.00–165.00 $162.88 $606 +29.77
400–407 fancy 405 3 176.00–179.00 $178.01 $721 —
420–445 433 2 145.00–160.00 $152.72 $661 +19.01
460–498 489 16 155.00–167.00 $163.09 $798 +21.84
505–535 515 3 150.00–162.00 $155.88 $803 +25.99
523 value added 523 9 166.00 $166.00 $868 —
550–583 569 24 140.00–155.00 $152.49 $868 +20.10
550–577 value added 570 16 159.00–160.00 $159.24 $908 —
602–640 617 5 125.00–138.00 $133.74 $825 +8.74
627 value added 627 2 145.00 $145.00 $909 —
650–672 659 8 114.00–126.00 $120.79 $796 —
705–715 707 13 126.00–135.00 $133.60 $945 —
713 value added 713 27 140.75 $140.75 $1,004 —
795 795 1 118.00 $118.00 $938 —
835 835 1 128.00 $128.00 $1,069 —
940 940 2 120.00 $120.00 $1,128 —
975 975 1 109.00 $109.00 $1,063 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 1 149.00 $149.00 $700 —
520 520 1 141.00 $141.00 $733 —
598 598 3 136.00 $136.00 $813 +16.99
660 660 1 110.00 $110.00 $726 +5.00
715 715 1 113.00 $113.00 $808 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–326 325 5 140.00 $140.00 $455 —
540 540 1 139.00 $139.00 $751 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
382 382 2 131.00 $131.00 $500 —
592 592 4 127.00 $127.00 $752 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–360 fancy 358 2 200.00–215.00 $207.45 $743 —
360–390 378 3 182.50–190.00 $185.84 $702 +35.84
400 400 1 190.00 $190.00 $760 +40.00
400–440 fancy 420 2 200.00–204.00 $202.10 $849 —
520–540 535 7 155.00–170.00 $161.41 $864 +28.62
550–555 551 7 160.00–176.00 $173.70 $957 +39.04
605–645 623 4 143.00–146.00 $144.77 $902 +12.77
655 fancy 655 2 162.00 $162.00 $1,061 —
660–690 676 4 131.00–140.00 $133.76 $904 +4.76
715–740 728 2 131.00–136.00 $133.54 $972 —
770 770 1 132.00 $132.00 $1,016 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
570–595 584 5 141.00–151.00 $145.80 $851 —
640–645 643 2 129.00–132.00 $130.51 $839 —
670–675 673 2 118.00–121.00 $119.51 $804 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280 280 1 135.00 $135.00 $378 —
375 375 1 147.50 $147.50 $553 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1060–1145 1109 80-85% 4 59.00–66.00 $63.47 $704 —
955–1440 1174 80-85% 24 67.00–77.00 $72.52 $851 +8.31
840–1490 1233 80-85% 14 79.00–95.00 $84.11 $1,037 +30.90
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
835–1035 923 85-90% 8 50.00–57.00 $54.11 $499 +2.04
890–1135 977 85-90% 6 58.00–65.00 $60.63 $592 +18.85
1010 1010 85-90% 1 47.00 $47.00 $475 -18.00
1075–1190 1133 85-90% 2 67.00–68.00 $67.47 $764 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1320–1640 1454 75-80% 11 78.00–88.00 $84.31 $1,226 —
1335–1660 1468 75-80% 4 69.00–74.00 $71.38 $1,048 -0.87

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1190–2075 1656 5 80.00–89.00 $84.16 $1,394 —
1615–2130 1853 3 92.00–95.00 $93.64 $1,735 —
1735–2305 2001 5 104.00–113.00 $108.26 $2,166 —

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Bred Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
820 820 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 720.00 $720.00
855 855 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 610.00 $610.00
995 995 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 700.00 $700.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1100 1100 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 720.00 $720.00
1130 1130 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 770.00 $770.00

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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.