Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Richmond, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, July 16, 2021

1,514 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $134.30/cwt -10.07 vs last sale · ≈ $1,248/hd at 929 lb · 167 head
heavy 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $137.93/cwt -8.88 vs last sale · ≈ $1,346/hd at 976 lb · 128 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $143.10/cwt +3.96 vs last sale · ≈ $976/hd at 682 lb · 83 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,514 1,210 861
Feeder cattle 1,329 1,133 826
Slaughter cattle 165 59 34
Replacement cattle 20 18 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

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

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
232 232 2 177.50 $177.50 $412 -2.50
400 400 1 159.00 $159.00 $636 -11.00
475 value added 475 14 170.00 $170.00 $808 —
499 499 5 151.00 $151.00 $753 —
502–505 503 5 167.00–168.00 $167.80 $844 +10.80
550 550 1 133.00 $133.00 $732 -26.50
575 value added 575 6 154.00 $154.00 $886 -8.18
607–622 value added 609 57 162.00–169.75 $168.78 $1,028 —
640 640 1 145.00 $145.00 $928 -0.68
680–695 686 5 139.00–143.00 $140.62 $965 -7.38
711–730 716 8 133.00–135.00 $134.49 $963 -5.51
729–748 value added 744 22 137.75–147.50 $139.92 $1,041 +4.92
830 value added 830 2 138.00 $138.00 $1,145 -7.00
835 835 7 135.00 $135.00 $1,127 —
877–888 value added 885 81 140.00–141.70 $141.31 $1,251 —
885 885 1 133.00 $133.00 $1,177 -2.18
910–939 value added 929 167 127.20–138.40 $134.30 $1,248 -10.07
960–992 value added 976 128 120.00–139.50 $137.93 $1,346 -8.88
1005–1042 value added 1023 268 130.00–138.00 $134.94 $1,380 -4.46
1062 value added 1062 22 129.50 $129.50 $1,375 -3.50

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
278 278 3 145.00 $145.00 $403 +5.23
315–325 322 3 136.00–155.00 $148.80 $479 +9.80
355–360 359 5 147.50–152.00 $151.11 $542 -1.37
416–430 421 13 130.00–145.00 $137.38 $578 -8.88
477–490 481 3 132.00–149.00 $137.77 $663 -7.93
500–535 521 5 141.00–147.00 $144.70 $754 +3.42
550–593 571 7 125.00–137.00 $130.40 $745 -12.64
602–645 628 10 118.00–129.00 $125.53 $788 -8.97
655–657 655 5 126.00 $126.00 $825 +2.03
684 value added 684 78 144.20 $144.20 $986 +1.55
758 value added 758 35 139.10 $139.10 $1,054 +7.35
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
545 545 4 106.00 $106.00 $578 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
610 610 4 120.00 $120.00 $732 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 135.00 $135.00 $594 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
276–290 280 4 160.00–177.00 $172.59 $483 —
365–375 366 7 165.00–174.00 $172.68 $632 —
400–441 420 10 160.00–167.00 $162.40 $682 +8.74
450–475 460 5 140.00–145.00 $142.07 $654 -6.71
500–530 513 10 145.00–153.00 $151.19 $776 —
570–590 574 10 142.00–149.00 $145.30 $834 +2.06
612–645 633 9 139.00–149.00 $142.15 $900 —
706–740 723 2 114.00–115.00 $114.49 $828 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
875 875 1 105.00 $105.00 $919 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
520 520 1 130.00 $130.00 $676 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1163–1585 1316 75-80% 18 67.50–72.50 $69.99 $921 +0.49
1355–1650 1520 75-80% 10 73.00–76.50 $73.88 $1,123 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
900–1255 1086 80-85% 13 64.00–68.00 $66.88 $726 -0.55
1100–1725 1303 80-85% 9 71.00–78.00 $74.26 $968 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
900 900 85-90% 2 54.00 $54.00 $486 —
950–1055 976 85-90% 4 57.00–64.00 $58.89 $575 —
1005–1190 1051 85-90% 4 66.50–69.00 $67.21 $706 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250–1300 1283 3 76.00–84.00 $79.95 $1,026 —
1445–1790 1618 2 93.00–98.00 $95.77 $1,550 —
1720–1915 1823 3 104.00–106.50 $105.14 $1,917 —

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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
1314 1314 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 2 995.00 $995.00 —
1175–1840 1458 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 5 1,050.00–1,385.00 $1,201.83 —

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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.