Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Richmond, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, March 3, 2023

472 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $181.38/cwt +28.38 vs last sale · ≈ $1,233/hd at 680 lb · 93 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $187.74/cwt +14.66 vs last sale · ≈ $1,494/hd at 796 lb · 66 head
light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $176.75/cwt +31.75 vs last sale · ≈ $1,647/hd at 932 lb · 53 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 472 503 1,295
Feeder cattle 427 429 1,065
Slaughter cattle 39 40 65
Replacement cattle 6 34 165

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Friday: Feeder steers under 600 lbs 6.00-8.00 lower, over 600 lbs 2.00-4.00 higher, Feeder heifers under 600 lbs 3.00-5.00 lower, over 600 lbs 1.00-3.00 higher, Good demand for feeder and yearling classes. Slaughter cows steady to 3.00 lower, Slaughter bulls 3.00-5.00 higher, Good demand for slaughter classes.

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
280 fancy 280 1 215.00 $215.00 $602 —
315–340 fancy 332 6 202.50–222.50 $209.93 $697 —
395 fancy 395 3 207.50–217.50 $214.17 $846 -23.83
445 445 1 180.00 $180.00 $801 -32.41
445 fancy 445 1 206.00 $206.00 $917 -32.00
450–475 463 2 182.00–197.00 $189.30 $876 -21.85
460–485 fancy 480 8 200.00–213.00 $202.35 $971 -34.55
510–535 value added 527 6 198.00–225.00 $205.87 $1,085 -15.13
535 535 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,016 -20.58
550–591 value added 574 11 198.00–217.00 $205.72 $1,181 +0.72
600–648 value added 636 4 187.00–206.00 $191.48 $1,218 -3.85
685 value added 685 15 190.00 $190.00 $1,302 —
685–693 691 5 174.00–177.00 $176.41 $1,219 -2.07
706 value added 706 10 180.00 $180.00 $1,271 ±0.00
780 780 2 170.00–171.00 $170.50 $1,330 -2.58
774–798 value added 796 64 179.50–189.00 $188.28 $1,499 —
932 value added 932 53 176.75 $176.75 $1,647 —
1026 1026 3 149.00 $149.00 $1,529 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 370 1 137.50 $137.50 $509 -45.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 180.00 $180.00 $468 —
300–320 310 2 172.50–190.00 $180.97 $561 -8.09
355 fancy 355 2 192.50 $192.50 $683 -8.50
360–395 385 4 163.00–185.00 $174.39 $671 -5.94
405–435 421 5 162.00–176.00 $167.86 $707 -9.79
411–440 fancy 425 16 180.00–190.00 $185.81 $790 -11.19
470–495 482 6 160.00–177.00 $169.35 $816 -9.87
500–530 value added 512 5 177.00–178.00 $177.39 $908 -2.61
510–530 520 6 155.00–170.00 $164.17 $854 -3.57
576 value added 576 4 181.00 $181.00 $1,043 —
590–595 593 2 163.00–171.00 $166.98 $990 -5.67
617–647 value added 630 13 171.00–184.00 $176.49 $1,112 +7.65
620–645 635 5 139.00–150.00 $145.21 $922 -10.10
665 665 2 140.00 $140.00 $931 -13.00
650–683 value added 680 91 167.00–184.10 $182.29 $1,240 —
734–737 value added 735 26 157.00–164.00 $162.38 $1,193 —
743 743 3 146.00 $146.00 $1,085 -4.99
795 795 1 131.00 $131.00 $1,041 -9.00
815 815 1 135.00 $135.00 $1,100 -12.00
890 890 1 136.00 $136.00 $1,210 -7.00
945 945 1 139.00 $139.00 $1,314 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
215–230 225 3 132.50–165.00 $154.65 $348 —
295 295 1 130.00 $130.00 $384 -45.00
540 540 1 104.00 $104.00 $562 -50.79
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1305 1305 1 120.00 $120.00 $1,566 +1.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285 fancy 285 1 215.00 $215.00 $613 —
335 fancy 335 2 210.00 $210.00 $704 -50.00
385 fancy 385 2 222.50 $222.50 $857 —
450–490 472 5 184.00–193.00 $190.37 $899 -24.63
510–547 535 3 170.00–180.00 $173.18 $927 -18.70
685 685 1 172.00 $172.00 $1,178 +1.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 164.00 $164.00 $795 -26.00
565 565 1 140.00 $140.00 $791 -35.28
870 870 1 106.00 $106.00 $922 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
930 930 85-90% 1 59.00 $59.00 $549 -17.92
935–1175 1034 85-90% 5 76.00–82.00 $78.56 $812 —
905–1180 1038 85-90% 5 85.00–93.00 $88.12 $915 —
1005–1150 1078 85-90% 2 69.00–71.00 $69.93 $754 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1195–1350 1267 80-85% 8 89.00–103.00 $93.82 $1,189 -10.96
1290–1310 1300 80-85% 2 81.00–84.00 $82.51 $1,073 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1730 1730 75-80% 1 96.00 $96.00 $1,661 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1295–1755 1470 3 107.00–113.00 $110.00 $1,617 -12.48
1490–1935 1723 4 119.00–133.00 $125.94 $2,170 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1005 1005 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 90.00 $90.00 $904

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1005–1200 1103 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 1,125.00–1,275.00 $1,206.63

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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
990–1075 1033 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 1,000.00–1,050.00 $1,023.97 —
1185 1185 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,000.00 $1,000.00 -249.10

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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.