Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Monday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, April 18, 2022

970 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $145.64/cwt +2.87 vs last sale · ≈ $1,033/hd at 709 lb · 279 head
light 8-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $134.65/cwt -1.80 vs last sale · ≈ $1,097/hd at 815 lb · 78 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $141.30/cwt -0.90 vs last sale · ≈ $1,118/hd at 791 lb · 75 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 970 1,290 1,373
Feeder cattle 826 1,117 1,136
Slaughter cattle 114 164 217
Replacement cattle 30 9 20

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Monday feeder steers sold steady to 3.00 higher with very good demand for weaned packages. Feeder heifers sold mostly steady to 3.00 higher on 400-500 lb weaned packages. Yearlings limited comparison. Slaughter cows and slaughter bulls sold steady with good demand.

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
265 265 1 187.00 $187.00 $496 —
340 value added 340 1 187.00 $187.00 $636 +7.00
360–382 375 3 176.00–180.00 $177.28 $665 -0.68
401–430 value added 411 15 176.00–190.00 $182.85 $752 +3.09
445 445 1 162.00 $162.00 $721 —
460–495 value added 475 8 177.00–188.00 $185.82 $883 +4.81
503–510 value added 505 16 179.00–194.00 $188.92 $954 +12.99
570–575 573 3 164.00 $164.00 $940 +1.85
565–582 value added 577 6 167.00–177.50 $171.51 $990 -6.52
605 value added 605 12 171.00–182.50 $181.54 $1,098 +14.96
666 value added 666 18 162.50 $162.50 $1,082 -3.24
783 value added 783 40 143.50 $143.50 $1,124 -6.94

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320 value added 320 1 164.00 $164.00 $525 -11.98
320–340 332 3 150.00–162.50 $155.06 $515 -7.02
370–395 value added 387 11 167.00–178.00 $174.08 $674 +5.57
395 395 1 161.00 $161.00 $636 —
410 410 1 145.00 $145.00 $594 -3.42
410–440 value added 431 6 153.00–169.00 $159.84 $689 +4.16
450–491 value added 480 30 155.00–169.00 $156.20 $750 +2.32
460–492 483 6 145.00–151.00 $147.96 $715 +0.47
500–543 value added 517 26 148.50–156.00 $153.11 $792 +0.23
500–547 531 3 139.00–144.00 $142.43 $756 +1.80
550–595 562 5 135.00–145.00 $141.51 $795 -1.23
562–578 value added 573 7 145.00–149.50 $147.13 $843 -3.61
609–637 value added 629 25 137.00–150.00 $141.65 $891 -1.35
667–690 value added 675 10 136.00–143.00 $140.85 $951 -3.29
700 700 1 131.00 $131.00 $917 +6.97
708–713 value added 709 278 144.00–148.00 $145.69 $1,033 +2.23
785 785 1 129.00 $129.00 $1,013 +5.35
765–797 value added 791 74 140.00–141.80 $141.47 $1,119 -2.53
800–821 value added 815 78 132.00–135.25 $134.65 $1,097 —
861–873 866 10 126.50–129.50 $128.29 $1,111 +8.29
895 895 1 108.00 $108.00 $967 -12.00
905 905 1 116.00 $116.00 $1,050 +11.00
908 908 30 129.25 $129.25 $1,174 +24.25
1000–1040 1020 2 102.00–112.00 $106.90 $1,090 —
1093 1093 5 97.50 $97.50 $1,066 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455 455 1 133.00 $133.00 $605 -5.00
550 550 1 127.00 $127.00 $698 -1.43
630 630 1 118.00 $118.00 $743 -3.35
650 650 1 126.00 $126.00 $819 +3.00
700 700 1 109.00 $109.00 $763 -6.81
817 817 2 98.00 $98.00 $801 —
975 975 1 90.00 $90.00 $878 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
295 295 1 185.00 $185.00 $546 -0.50
330–335 333 2 177.50–178.00 $177.75 $592 +3.17
380–385 384 4 178.00–185.00 $183.27 $704 +9.74
392 value added 392 2 181.00 $181.00 $710 —
415–425 value added 420 2 174.00–175.00 $174.51 $733 +0.42
455–470 value added 459 4 174.00–188.00 $181.20 $832 +8.87
465 465 1 167.00 $167.00 $777 +6.80
511–540 526 6 154.00–157.00 $155.46 $818 -3.40
500–548 value added 528 10 167.00–185.00 $178.34 $942 +5.97
560 560 1 159.00 $159.00 $890 +3.87
565 value added 565 2 176.00 $176.00 $994 +7.99
605 value added 605 1 154.00 $154.00 $932 +2.80
655–660 value added 658 3 146.00–149.00 $148.01 $974 -4.99
657–680 669 4 130.00–144.00 $136.88 $916 -1.46
715–722 720 3 124.00–137.00 $132.69 $955 +2.54
775 775 1 126.00 $126.00 $976 +6.00
805 805 1 130.00 $130.00 $1,046 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 152.50 $152.50 $396 —
557 557 2 139.00 $139.00 $774 -4.44
610 610 1 112.00 $112.00 $683 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
415 415 2 162.50 $162.50 $674 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1145 1145 80-85% 2 74.00 $74.00 $847 —
1070–1380 1188 80-85% 12 75.00–83.00 $80.45 $956 +10.46
1135–1805 1335 80-85% 23 84.00–98.00 $88.38 $1,180 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1315 1315 75-80% 1 72.00 $72.00 $947 ±0.00
1155–1445 1317 75-80% 8 76.00–82.00 $78.85 $1,038 +6.85
1175–1840 1529 75-80% 18 83.00–90.00 $86.71 $1,326 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
860 860 85-90% 1 60.00 $60.00 $516 —
855–1115 1013 85-90% 6 66.00–71.00 $68.11 $690 -2.71
985–1085 1035 85-90% 2 63.00–64.00 $63.52 $657 -7.30
855–1340 1116 85-90% 17 74.00–101.00 $85.60 $955 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200–2205 1678 3 96.00–105.00 $99.90 $1,676 —
1635–2385 1981 8 106.00–124.00 $114.23 $2,263 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
925–1540 1196 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 10 875.00–1,250.00 $1,063.41
1225 1225 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,000.00 $1,000.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
905 905 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 675.00 $675.00

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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
1020–1490 1322 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 6 1,300.00–1,525.00 $1,428.03 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
795 795 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 825.00 $825.00 —

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
717 717 4 121.00 $121.00 $868 —
870 870 1 105.00 $105.00 $914 —

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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.