Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards Market Report

Richmond, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, May 16, 2025

301 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $373.33/cwt -4.71 vs last sale · ≈ $2,069/hd at 554 lb · 48 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $331.30/cwt -5.69 vs last sale · ≈ $2,129/hd at 643 lb · 19 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $328.31/cwt -17.60 vs last sale · ≈ $1,827/hd at 556 lb · 16 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 301 655 446
Feeder cattle 241 564 409
Slaughter cattle 40 60 34
Replacement cattle 20 31 3

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Friday feeder steers sold 2.00 to 5.00 lower. Feeder heifers sold unevenly steady. There was moderate to good demand for feeder classes. Severe weather in the area limited receipts and demand for the feeder market today. Slaughter cows sold 6.00 to 8.00 higher. Slaughter bulls sold 2.00 to 4.00 higher. There was 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
275 275 1 405.00 $405.00 $1,114 -50.00
360–380 367 3 382.50–400.00 $388.55 $1,426 -31.45
425–449 448 16 392.50–405.00 $404.26 $1,811 -9.08
455–490 470 5 360.00–372.50 $365.91 $1,720 -37.84
500–535 516 5 340.00–355.00 $350.10 $1,807 -29.90
553 value added 553 46 375.00 $375.00 $2,074 —
580 580 2 335.00 $335.00 $1,943 -43.04
615–645 630 2 307.50–317.50 $312.62 $1,970 -9.25
610–648 value added 644 17 333.00–337.50 $333.50 $2,148 -64.00
655–670 662 7 317.50–325.00 $321.43 $2,128 -2.52
765–780 773 2 280.00–285.00 $282.52 $2,184 —
842 842 2 270.00 $270.00 $2,273 +17.52
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350 350 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,225 —
460 460 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,495 —
500 500 1 320.00 $320.00 $1,600 -35.00
560–597 585 3 300.00 $300.00 $1,755 -38.72
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 1 342.50 $342.50 $1,610 —
525 525 1 295.00 $295.00 $1,549 —
610 610 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,708 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1535 1535 1 190.00 $190.00 $2,916 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 1 370.00 $370.00 $888 -85.00
305 305 1 390.00 $390.00 $1,190 +4.95
372–395 378 9 377.50–382.50 $381.36 $1,442 -1.06
400–429 425 7 365.00–370.00 $365.67 $1,554 -8.50
455–485 469 7 347.50–365.00 $356.25 $1,671 +7.51
505–518 512 6 330.00–345.00 $335.76 $1,719 -19.20
554 value added 554 8 336.00 $336.00 $1,861 —
550–562 559 8 312.50–325.00 $320.62 $1,792 -25.29
610 value added 610 3 310.00 $310.00 $1,891 —
623–645 633 10 285.00–300.00 $290.91 $1,841 +11.52
650–680 670 6 270.00–282.50 $278.46 $1,866 +10.37
840 840 1 232.50 $232.50 $1,953 ±0.00
1062 1062 2 230.00 $230.00 $2,443 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300 300 1 307.50 $307.50 $922 —
410 410 2 285.00 $285.00 $1,168 -35.00
520 520 1 242.50 $242.50 $1,261 —
575–590 583 4 287.50 $287.50 $1,676 -12.50
617 617 2 240.00 $240.00 $1,481 —
675 675 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,688 +25.00
770 770 2 217.50–220.00 $218.75 $1,684 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
495 495 1 335.00 $335.00 $1,658 —
670 670 1 265.00 $265.00 $1,776 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1620 1620 1 190.00 $190.00 $3,078 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
227 227 2 510.00 $510.00 $1,158 —
265 265 1 510.00 $510.00 $1,352 +25.00
455–465 461 4 357.50–367.50 $361.26 $1,665 -61.24
500–547 525 4 320.00–337.50 $327.78 $1,721 -22.22
571–585 575 4 330.00–335.00 $331.27 $1,905 -30.01
625–627 626 4 290.00–295.00 $292.50 $1,831 -38.72
672 672 6 300.00 $300.00 $2,016 +10.00
782 782 2 290.00 $290.00 $2,268 —
855 855 1 255.00 $255.00 $2,180 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
487–495 490 3 325.00–332.50 $327.53 $1,605 -32.47
770 770 1 252.00 $252.00 $1,940 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
622 622 2 277.50 $277.50 $1,726 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1080–1370 1204 80-85% 4 168.00–176.00 $171.03 $2,059 +9.12
1025–1395 1231 80-85% 13 159.00–167.00 $162.80 $2,004 +0.89
1235–1460 1354 80-85% 4 155.00–158.00 $155.96 $2,112 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905 905 85-90% 1 134.00 $134.00 $1,213 —
975–1025 1000 85-90% 2 145.00–148.00 $146.46 $1,465 +32.46
890–1305 1073 85-90% 4 137.00–142.00 $139.48 $1,497 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1485–1660 1553 75-80% 3 159.00–167.00 $163.83 $2,544 +4.51
1560 1560 75-80% 1 155.00 $155.00 $2,418 -4.32
1550–1590 1570 75-80% 2 172.00–174.00 $173.01 $2,716 +13.69

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1335 1335 1 171.00 $171.00 $2,283 +13.94
1323–1935 1476 4 203.00–206.00 $203.98 $3,011 —
1285–2540 1715 3 182.00–190.00 $187.70 $3,219 —
YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1820 1820 1 216.00 $216.00 $3,931 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1085–1270 1178 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 2,225.00–2,300.00 $2,259.55
1150–1245 1198 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 2,025.00–2,300.00 $2,157.05

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
905–1110 977 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 1,900.00–2,000.00 $1,940.70

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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
835–950 895 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 1,625.00–2,600.00 $2,292.90 —

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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.