Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Richmond, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, April 15, 2022

649 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $143.34/cwt +10.23 vs last sale · ≈ $1,094/hd at 763 lb · 73 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $145.89/cwt +6.54 vs last sale · ≈ $970/hd at 665 lb · 26 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $177.46/cwt +3.03 vs last sale · ≈ $998/hd at 562 lb · 19 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 649 819 976
Feeder cattle 418 736 826
Slaughter cattle 81 49 115
Replacement cattle 150 34 35

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steers and heifers sold steady to 3.00 higher with good demand. Yearlings lightly tested. 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
305–335 320 2 187.50–192.50 $190.12 $608 +7.62
366 fancy 366 4 217.00 $217.00 $794 —
370–385 378 2 183.00–193.00 $187.90 $710 +2.01
420–443 435 7 180.00–192.00 $187.88 $817 +7.48
441 fancy 441 3 214.00 $214.00 $944 —
461 fancy 461 4 201.00 $201.00 $927 —
460–485 470 3 180.00–195.00 $187.70 $882 +8.68
500–530 508 11 180.00–191.00 $185.80 $944 +12.39
523 value added 523 4 205.00 $205.00 $1,072 +17.00
551–554 value added 553 9 183.00–187.00 $184.33 $1,019 +4.33
555–580 571 10 165.00–176.00 $171.27 $978 -2.46
600–612 value added 608 3 174.00–177.00 $174.99 $1,064 +0.43
600–636 622 7 154.00–165.00 $158.93 $989 -3.76
655–660 658 2 154.00–169.00 $161.53 $1,063 —
700–730 728 15 154.00–160.00 $159.62 $1,162 +5.25
840 840 1 151.00 $151.00 $1,268 —
935 935 2 133.50 $133.50 $1,248 -3.50
950–960 957 3 133.00–138.00 $136.34 $1,305 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
237 237 2 160.00 $160.00 $379 —
250 250 1 160.00 $160.00 $400 —
321–347 333 6 158.00–168.00 $165.60 $551 +8.26
360 fancy 360 1 170.00 $170.00 $612 —
370–396 390 4 152.00–154.00 $152.47 $595 -0.30
400–441 427 6 149.00–157.00 $154.66 $660 +2.01
443 fancy 443 4 171.00 $171.00 $758 —
456–480 465 9 149.00–159.00 $155.61 $724 +3.44
500–511 509 8 142.00–152.00 $147.64 $751 +2.28
513–525 value added 518 5 160.00–161.00 $160.41 $831 +0.41
570–595 585 12 138.00–144.00 $141.38 $827 -3.11
610–637 633 6 143.00–148.00 $143.80 $910 +2.12
650–677 665 26 144.00–148.00 $145.89 $970 +7.35
700–735 718 6 124.00–139.00 $133.37 $958 +7.42
763 value added 763 70 144.00 $144.00 $1,099 —
766 766 3 128.00 $128.00 $980 -5.11
826 826 5 125.00 $125.00 $1,032 -1.63
860 860 1 118.00 $118.00 $1,015 -1.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
500 500 2 127.00 $127.00 $635 -8.00

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
225 225 1 177.50 $177.50 $399 —
345 345 1 170.00 $170.00 $586 -15.00
365–375 368 3 160.00–176.00 $168.68 $621 +1.34
400–425 413 4 168.00–183.00 $173.85 $718 +7.55
450–491 471 6 161.00–175.00 $168.20 $792 +1.66
500–533 518 7 164.00–176.00 $171.38 $888 +14.67
550–598 582 9 150.00–166.00 $156.69 $912 -6.13
620–640 630 2 149.00–154.00 $151.46 $954 -1.87
687 687 2 137.00 $137.00 $941 -10.00
710 710 1 132.00 $132.00 $937 -1.44
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
510–520 515 2 132.00–145.00 $138.44 $713 +4.44

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
935–1450 1187 80-85% 24 77.00–84.00 $80.39 $954 +7.51
1005–1475 1238 80-85% 6 86.00–90.50 $88.18 $1,092 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1245–1650 1414 75-80% 11 77.50–81.50 $80.24 $1,135 —
1440 1440 75-80% 1 74.50 $74.50 $1,073 —
1185–1750 1445 75-80% 13 84.00–89.00 $85.30 $1,233 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
865–880 873 85-90% 2 61.00 $61.00 $533 -1.88
920–1015 976 85-90% 4 65.00–69.00 $66.78 $652 —
915–1265 1076 85-90% 6 72.00–76.00 $74.20 $798 +4.42

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1760–1860 1810 2 107.00–110.00 $108.54 $1,965 —

↑ Back to top

Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1105 1105 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 950.00 $950.00
925–1355 1159 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 17 875.00–1,300.00 $1,109.37
930–1550 1223 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 12 925.00–1,475.00 $1,279.30

↑ Back to top

Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1030–1545 1187 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 89 1,200.00–1,825.00 $1,613.25 +520.74
1115–1450 1241 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 14 850.00–1,225.00 $1,078.80 —
1405 1405 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,600.00 $1,600.00 —

↑ Back to top

Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
737 737 2 84.00 $84.00 $619 —
819 819 62 128.60 $128.60 $1,053 —

↑ Back to top

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.