Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Richmond, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, April 30, 2021

489 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $137.54/cwt -10.99 vs last sale · ≈ $887/hd at 645 lb · 91 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $138.97/cwt +13.97 vs last sale · ≈ $1,045/hd at 752 lb · 55 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $147.56/cwt +9.69 vs last sale · ≈ $779/hd at 528 lb · 32 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 489 377 474
Feeder cattle 407 325 427
Slaughter cattle 26 47 35
Replacement cattle 56 5 12

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steer calves sold steady. Heifer calves sold 2.00 higher. Yearling steers and heifers sold 3.00 lower. Slaughter cows and bulls sold steady.

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
260 260 5 172.50 $172.50 $448 +12.50
425–432 429 7 147.00–164.00 $154.22 $662 -4.14
472–475 474 11 157.00–164.00 $160.83 $762 -11.17
598 598 8 145.00 $145.00 $867 -3.10
605–648 645 91 134.00–137.75 $137.54 $887 -10.99
692 692 6 133.00 $133.00 $920 -7.38
750 value added 750 53 139.50 $139.50 $1,046 —
795 795 2 125.00 $125.00 $994 ±0.00
813 813 5 119.00 $119.00 $967 —
882 value added 882 6 115.00 $115.00 $1,014 -14.70

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300 300 3 164.00 $164.00 $492 +13.00
375 375 6 156.00 $156.00 $585 +1.55
388 value added 388 3 161.00 $161.00 $625 —
420–445 434 18 140.00–150.00 $144.72 $628 -1.30
460 value added 460 4 152.00 $152.00 $699 —
452–480 467 16 129.00–148.00 $141.99 $663 -5.16
510–537 522 17 137.00–150.00 $142.98 $746 +5.11
520–537 value added 534 15 149.00–154.00 $152.76 $816 —
550–555 value added 553 8 147.00 $147.00 $813 +7.00
560–576 572 14 127.00–136.00 $130.37 $746 +0.12
695 695 7 120.00 $120.00 $834 +0.71
717–720 718 16 112.00–125.00 $120.11 $862 +16.44

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405–425 418 8 145.00–147.00 $145.73 $609 -8.27
455–468 462 11 156.00–160.00 $157.25 $726 +1.63
502 502 6 146.00 $146.00 $733 -14.45
597 597 4 130.00 $130.00 $776 -12.30
720 720 2 105.00 $105.00 $756 -10.01
780 780 3 100.00 $100.00 $780 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
865–1345 1188 80-85% 13 55.00–66.00 $60.81 $722 —
1055–1480 1237 80-85% 22 60.00–73.00 $66.81 $826 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1240–1510 1423 75-80% 8 59.00–65.00 $63.95 $910 —
1275–1615 1436 75-80% 5 66.00–68.00 $66.83 $960 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
965 965 85-90% 2 50.00 $50.00 $482 —
970–1285 1098 85-90% 4 63.00–64.00 $63.55 $698 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200–2100 1657 3 95.00–98.00 $96.49 $1,599 —
1260–2080 1752 5 89.00–94.00 $92.56 $1,622 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1130 1130 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 950.00 $950.00
1210 1210 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,110.00 $1,110.00

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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
1380–1575 1498 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 5 1,075.00–1,275.00 $1,145.44 —

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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.