Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, September 20, 2022

719 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $170.76/cwt +1.75 vs last sale · ≈ $1,161/hd at 680 lb · 89 head
heavy 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $163.18/cwt +11.18 vs last sale · ≈ $1,585/hd at 971 lb · 62 head
light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $164.75/cwt +17.75 vs last sale · ≈ $1,522/hd at 924 lb · 60 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 719 1,781 1,425
Feeder cattle 662 1,720 1,329
Slaughter cattle 56 60 96
Replacement cattle 1 1 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday feeder steers sold mostly steady in a limited comparison. Feeder heifers sold 2.00 to 5.00 lower with most decline on fleshy 500-600 lb calves. Buyers showing preference for weaned packages; soft, fleshy, and bawling calves facing discounts. Yearlings sold steady in a 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
380 380 1 183.00 $183.00 $695 —
405–430 422 3 180.00–182.00 $180.64 $762 —
460 460 1 174.00 $174.00 $800 -6.00
500 500 3 164.00 $164.00 $820 -14.20
518 fancy 518 20 191.25 $191.25 $991 —
571–591 582 9 173.00–174.00 $173.44 $1,009 +0.29
613–630 value added 626 24 160.00–194.00 $186.51 $1,168 +6.34
662 value added 662 6 186.00 $186.00 $1,231 +7.48
723–746 value added 727 18 164.00–166.00 $164.34 $1,195 -6.11
735 735 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,102 -5.95
792 value added 792 21 171.50 $171.50 $1,358 +11.51
824 824 39 170.90 $170.90 $1,408 +16.90
850 850 22 161.25 $161.25 $1,371 —
924 924 60 164.75 $164.75 $1,522 +17.75
970 fancy 970 57 166.00 $166.00 $1,610 —
985 985 5 131.00 $131.00 $1,290 -21.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
460 460 1 167.00 $167.00 $768 -8.00
535 535 2 160.00 $160.00 $856 +13.43
550 550 1 160.00 $160.00 $880 -4.54
625 625 1 152.00 $152.00 $950 +7.66
670–675 673 2 145.00–151.00 $147.99 $996 +5.99
725 725 1 135.00 $135.00 $979 -10.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 2 147.00 $147.00 $581 -13.50
400 value added 400 2 162.00 $162.00 $648 +1.08
410–447 427 5 153.00–156.00 $154.00 $658 +1.67
465–482 value added 477 20 153.00–157.50 $156.94 $749 -0.87
465–492 485 18 142.00–150.00 $147.70 $716 -4.59
502–542 517 16 140.00–150.00 $144.12 $745 -3.19
520–542 value added 535 3 155.00–160.00 $156.62 $838 -6.27
550–590 576 4 142.00–150.00 $147.08 $847 -3.89
578–587 value added 580 8 153.00–153.50 $153.37 $890 -9.89
601–621 value added 616 33 157.00–170.00 $167.38 $1,031 +7.63
679–685 value added 680 89 161.50–172.50 $170.76 $1,161 +1.33
710–730 value added 720 2 144.00–145.00 $144.51 $1,040 -6.56
759 value added 759 22 152.00 $152.00 $1,154 -10.87
883 883 5 136.50 $136.50 $1,205 —
910 910 5 132.00 $132.00 $1,201 —
955 955 1 123.00 $123.00 $1,175 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 370 1 140.00 $140.00 $518 —
450–461 456 6 130.00–140.00 $134.94 $615 —
557–570 561 3 138.00–140.00 $138.68 $778 —
605–630 610 5 120.00–131.00 $127.58 $778 -8.58
685 685 1 132.00 $132.00 $904 -7.00
705–722 714 4 104.00–110.00 $106.96 $764 -29.04
845 845 1 115.00 $115.00 $972 —
865 865 1 116.00 $116.00 $1,003 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
675 675 1 130.00 $130.00 $878 —
700 700 1 129.00 $129.00 $903 —
915 915 1 123.00 $123.00 $1,125 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1068 1068 3 99.00 $99.00 $1,057 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–370 363 2 182.50 $182.50 $662 —
415–445 433 3 174.00–176.00 $175.00 $758 -4.62
450–485 470 3 168.00–170.00 $168.67 $793 -13.32
526 value added 526 6 171.00 $171.00 $899 -7.00
557–590 577 8 150.00–155.00 $153.48 $886 -7.72
620 value added 620 3 151.00 $151.00 $936 -5.69
635–642 640 3 138.00–144.00 $142.01 $909 —
665 665 1 145.00 $145.00 $964 +1.73
670–675 value added 673 2 149.00–150.00 $149.50 $1,006 -4.50
700–745 723 2 131.00–142.00 $136.67 $988 -10.33
785–795 792 3 138.00–143.00 $139.65 $1,106 +0.65
820–835 828 2 138.00–147.00 $142.54 $1,180 +25.54
1000 1000 1 115.00 $115.00 $1,150 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285 285 1 160.00 $160.00 $456 +7.50
435 435 1 145.00 $145.00 $631 +5.00
450–475 463 2 138.00–151.00 $144.68 $670 -12.35
510–535 523 2 129.00–130.00 $129.51 $677 -16.63
580 580 1 130.00 $130.00 $754 -12.26
632 632 2 127.00 $127.00 $803 -23.00
655 655 1 132.00 $132.00 $865 —
855–865 860 2 114.00 $114.00 $980 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 125.00 $125.00 $606 —
540 540 1 108.00 $108.00 $583 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
925 925 1 110.00 $110.00 $1,018 -8.00

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1230–1455 1342 75-80% 5 73.00–79.00 $76.19 $1,022 —
1075–1610 1347 75-80% 3 80.00–83.00 $81.47 $1,097 —
1510–1740 1603 75-80% 5 86.00–94.00 $90.28 $1,447 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1090–1370 1166 80-85% 8 71.00–78.00 $75.14 $876 —
1110–1375 1208 80-85% 3 80.00–82.00 $80.61 $974 +4.29
1285–1385 1335 80-85% 2 86.00–96.00 $91.19 $1,217 +3.40
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
855–950 903 85-90% 2 41.00–57.00 $48.58 $439 —
820–1010 915 85-90% 2 80.00–83.00 $81.34 $744 —
850–1290 1051 85-90% 5 65.00–70.00 $67.80 $713 +3.02
1005–1125 1078 85-90% 3 71.00–78.00 $74.46 $803 -2.91

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1180–1590 1365 3 82.00–93.00 $88.28 $1,205 —
1205–2125 1665 2 94.00–108.00 $102.93 $1,714 -10.74
1730–2100 1910 5 113.00–120.00 $116.40 $2,223 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1050 1050 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 87.00 $87.00 $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.