Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Richmond, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, May 28, 2021

317 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $143.76/cwt +18.76 vs last sale · ≈ $1,033/hd at 719 lb · 78 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $132.00/cwt ≈ $929/hd at 704 lb · 71 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $114.23/cwt +0.23 vs last sale · ≈ $785/hd at 687 lb · 21 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 317 409 824
Feeder cattle 278 377 749
Slaughter cattle 29 32 51
Replacement cattle 10 — 24

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steer and heifer calves sold steady. Yearling steers and heifers steady. Saughter cows 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
456 456 8 160.00 $160.00 $730 +1.80
524–545 531 10 149.00–163.00 $157.30 $835 +6.83
553–583 566 7 145.00–153.00 $149.47 $846 +9.47
625–632 631 5 137.00–139.00 $138.60 $875 +4.60
705 705 2 125.00 $125.00 $881 ±0.00
719 value added 719 76 144.25 $144.25 $1,037 —
775 775 2 129.00 $129.00 $1,000 -3.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350–390 378 10 130.00–140.00 $134.76 $509 +0.96
425 425 6 130.00 $130.00 $552 -5.00
487–497 490 6 126.00–129.00 $127.99 $627 -4.55
510–525 518 10 124.00–129.00 $126.37 $655 -1.20
560–588 582 18 119.00–130.00 $126.14 $734 -0.86
655–698 687 21 109.00–120.00 $114.23 $785 +0.23
704 value added 704 71 132.00 $132.00 $929 —
765 765 2 104.00 $104.00 $796 -14.92
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 1 113.00 $113.00 $593 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 2 125.00 $125.00 $556 —
450–455 453 4 155.00–163.00 $159.02 $720 +14.02
500–542 523 11 141.00–153.00 $144.33 $755 +2.95
575 575 4 153.00 $153.00 $880 +15.89
622–625 624 6 129.00–138.00 $133.49 $833 -1.51
660–695 681 11 123.00–140.00 $135.39 $922 +13.39

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1210–1955 1450 75-80% 5 71.00–75.00 $73.39 $1,064 —
1345–1730 1536 75-80% 7 76.00–85.00 $78.52 $1,206 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1045 1045 80-85% 1 77.00 $77.00 $805 —
1100–1300 1196 80-85% 5 66.00–75.00 $71.50 $855 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1115 1115 85-90% 1 66.50 $66.50 $741 -0.50

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1675 1675 1 110.00 $110.00 $1,842 —
1730 1730 1 103.00 $103.00 $1,782 —

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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
1340 1340 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 2 1,225.00 $1,225.00 —
1335–1420 1392 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 3 1,210.00–1,285.00 $1,261.02 —

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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.