Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Richmond, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, April 2, 2021

845 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 $173.04/cwt +11.83 vs last sale · ≈ $805/hd at 465 lb · 87 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $166.00/cwt +0.05 vs last sale · ≈ $868/hd at 523 lb · 63 head
heavy 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $127.41/cwt ≈ $1,217/hd at 955 lb · 58 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 845 549 926
Feeder cattle 778 507 832
Slaughter cattle 30 42 44
Replacement cattle 37 — 50

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week feeder calves sold 5.00 to 7.00 higher. Yearling steers and heifers 5.00 higher. Slaughter cows and bulls 3.00 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
230 230 1 175.00 $175.00 $402 —
255–285 270 4 173.00–185.00 $178.67 $482 —
305–345 322 9 170.00–180.00 $176.13 $567 -2.01
350–392 368 21 167.00–182.00 $173.26 $638 -35.74
425–432 429 8 164.00–167.00 $165.89 $712 -10.84
435 value added 435 5 185.50 $185.50 $807 +10.50
450–497 465 87 162.50–181.00 $173.04 $805 +9.48
512–527 value added 514 33 160.50–175.50 $170.24 $875 +3.59
515–546 533 30 159.00–165.00 $161.33 $860 +0.33
550–558 value added 556 19 130.00–165.00 $153.65 $854 -4.68
560–567 564 6 153.00–154.00 $153.50 $866 -4.78
610–647 value added 617 19 155.00–166.00 $160.83 $992 —
601–645 625 18 137.00–147.00 $143.64 $898 +9.64
652–673 663 24 135.00–142.00 $138.69 $920 +13.69
685–698 value added 690 11 138.50–142.50 $139.97 $966 —
705–730 value added 718 4 136.00 $136.00 $976 +1.33
761 value added 761 23 140.10 $140.10 $1,066 —
770 770 1 130.00 $130.00 $1,001 +4.00
861 value added 861 14 123.00 $123.00 $1,059 -7.50
911 value added 911 12 124.60 $124.60 $1,135 —
954–971 value added 955 58 115.00–128.10 $127.41 $1,217 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
252 252 2 162.50 $162.50 $410 —
328–335 332 6 135.00–145.00 $139.95 $465 -14.05
365–399 386 22 143.00–155.00 $150.04 $579 +6.83
411–435 416 38 140.00–156.00 $146.83 $611 +11.36
450–487 462 28 131.00–152.00 $144.05 $666 +7.54
535–544 541 8 131.00–135.00 $132.48 $717 +8.60
555–580 560 10 123.00–130.00 $127.02 $711 +1.84
615–640 621 4 120.00–135.00 $123.86 $769 -0.98
670–690 682 9 112.00–122.00 $115.53 $788 -8.50
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
600 600 3 110.00 $110.00 $660 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 370 3 160.00 $160.00 $592 +4.00
410–441 433 11 160.00–166.00 $163.81 $709 —
455 455 3 170.00 $170.00 $774 —
505–524 513 16 152.00–166.00 $158.91 $815 +6.05
565–590 573 11 141.00–155.00 $146.63 $840 +7.81
620–645 630 10 138.00–155.00 $143.33 $903 —
705–745 725 6 124.00–132.00 $127.89 $927 +2.89
765 765 3 85.00 $85.00 $650 -28.41
855 855 1 106.00 $106.00 $906 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1270–1475 1372 75-80% 6 56.00–62.00 $59.29 $813 —
1355–1740 1533 75-80% 6 65.00–67.50 $66.29 $1,016 +3.69
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1120–1220 1170 80-85% 2 57.00–61.50 $59.15 $692 —
1185–1410 1298 80-85% 7 65.00–68.00 $66.68 $866 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
885–1125 1005 85-90% 2 51.00–52.50 $51.84 $521 —
955–1115 1035 85-90% 2 55.00–58.00 $56.38 $584 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1410 1410 1 62.00 $62.00 $874 —
1445–1970 1628 3 85.00–92.50 $88.87 $1,447 —
1850–1995 1940 3 97.00–99.00 $97.69 $1,895 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 850.00 $850.00
1005–1130 1063 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 5 655.00–810.00 $764.75
1225–1515 1370 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 950.00–1,185.00 $1,055.06

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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
1172 1172 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 3 1,300.00 $1,300.00 —
1180–1415 1281 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 10 1,175.00–1,350.00 $1,280.37 —

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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.