Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, March 16, 2021

523 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $124.41/cwt +6.52 vs last sale · ≈ $877/hd at 705 lb · 84 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $123.57/cwt +4.25 vs last sale · ≈ $1,090/hd at 882 lb · 78 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $152.24/cwt +8.73 vs last sale · ≈ $925/hd at 608 lb · 55 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 523 1,258 404
Feeder cattle 492 1,172 338
Slaughter cattle 24 81 58
Replacement cattle 7 5 8

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday feeder steers sold mostly steady with good demand for calves. Moderate demand for yearlings. Feeder heifers sold 1.00 to 3.00 lower with moderate demand except good quality open replacement heifers sold 4.00 to 5.00 higher with good demand. Slaughter cows and bulls sold steady in a light test.

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
315–330 323 2 160.00–169.00 $164.60 $532 +2.60
445 445 10 145.00 $145.00 $645 —
445 value added 445 1 164.00 $164.00 $730 +0.34
450–490 value added 480 4 154.00–156.00 $155.02 $744 -13.65
500 value added 500 1 165.00 $165.00 $825 +4.08
510–517 513 5 145.00–149.00 $147.81 $758 +0.85
580 value added 580 1 149.00 $149.00 $864 -6.09
580–585 583 3 144.00–147.00 $144.99 $845 -1.01
603–645 value added 606 48 138.00–156.00 $154.80 $938 +11.02
615–640 621 7 131.00–137.00 $134.71 $837 -0.29
650–676 value added 669 11 136.50–140.00 $137.43 $919 -5.21
670 670 1 135.00 $135.00 $904 +3.11
703–737 value added 717 28 132.00–134.00 $133.15 $955 +0.55
756–793 779 8 122.00–125.00 $123.91 $965 +2.40
822–830 823 9 120.00 $120.00 $988 -5.06
882–884 882 78 118.50–125.10 $123.57 $1,090 +4.25
926 926 7 119.00 $119.00 $1,102 -4.30
952 952 21 119.75 $119.75 $1,140 +6.75
1176 1176 6 103.50 $103.50 $1,217 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
765 765 1 112.00 $112.00 $857 -7.00
805 805 1 110.00 $110.00 $886 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 1 139.00 $139.00 $466 +4.55
375–380 377 3 144.00–145.00 $144.66 $545 +12.68
420 value added 420 2 139.00 $139.00 $584 -2.68
475–490 value added 483 2 132.00–137.00 $134.46 $649 -8.29
500–520 510 2 124.00–125.00 $124.49 $635 —
505–540 value added 523 6 129.00–134.00 $130.84 $684 -3.80
555–577 value added 568 12 126.00–134.00 $130.91 $744 -1.60
615–645 630 2 116.00 $116.00 $731 -0.80
622–642 636 8 117.00–121.00 $120.01 $763 +3.21
665–670 668 5 117.00–122.00 $120.01 $802 +2.11
668 value added 668 15 127.50 $127.50 $852 -4.03
700 700 5 112.00 $112.00 $784 -3.00
701–735 value added 705 79 119.00–125.50 $125.20 $883 +6.20
752 value added 752 8 120.00 $120.00 $902 —
765–772 770 14 112.00–114.00 $113.43 $873 -6.78
836 836 5 116.00 $116.00 $970 +21.18
852–864 861 7 111.00–114.00 $113.15 $974 +8.23
870 870 1 103.00 $103.00 $896 -1.92
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
385 385 1 116.00 $116.00 $447 +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
290 fancy 290 1 175.00 $175.00 $508 —
350–357 355 3 151.00–154.00 $153.01 $543 -6.54
450 450 1 144.00 $144.00 $648 ±0.00
578 578 9 144.00 $144.00 $832 +2.50
615–645 630 2 124.00–125.00 $124.49 $784 +4.49
670–695 680 4 119.00–125.00 $121.02 $823 +1.02
712–718 716 6 119.00 $119.00 $852 +1.00
828–846 835 10 105.00–108.00 $106.59 $890 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
664 664 10 103.50 $103.50 $687 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 1 134.00 $134.00 $436 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1165–1485 1308 80-85% 5 62.00–63.00 $62.61 $819 —
1205–1460 1345 80-85% 6 54.00–59.00 $56.41 $759 —
1365 1365 80-85% 1 42.00 $42.00 $573 -13.95
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
965–1000 983 85-90% 2 45.00–47.00 $46.02 $452 —
1135 1135 85-90% 1 55.00 $55.00 $624 —
1195 1195 85-90% 1 54.00 $54.00 $645 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1580–1660 1620 75-80% 2 60.00–62.00 $60.98 $988 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1580–1770 1675 2 91.00 $91.00 $1,524 —
2140 2140 1 95.00 $95.00 $2,033 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1265 1265 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 66.00 $66.00 $835
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1045 1045 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 55.00 $55.00 $575

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1525 1525 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 875.00 $875.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1150 1150 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 650.00 $650.00
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
815 815 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 575.00 $575.00

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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
1495–1580 1538 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,175.00–1,200.00 $1,187.85 —

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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.