Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, January 31, 2023

442 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $173.70/cwt +18.54 vs last sale · ≈ $1,127/hd at 649 lb · 81 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $174.93/cwt +5.86 vs last sale · ≈ $1,310/hd at 749 lb · 80 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $168.27/cwt +24.51 vs last sale · ≈ $1,239/hd at 736 lb · 77 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 442 527 738
Feeder cattle 380 383 665
Slaughter cattle 60 143 70
Replacement cattle 2 1 3

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday feeder calves lightly tested. Very good demand for yearlings. Slaughter cows sold 10.00 higher with very good demand. Slaughter bulls sold 3.00 to 5.00 higher 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
320 value added 320 1 221.00 $221.00 $707 —
405 value added 405 1 197.00 $197.00 $798 -16.22
405–410 408 3 192.50–195.00 $194.17 $792 +4.17
460 value added 460 1 194.00 $194.00 $892 -10.23
658 value added 658 8 165.00 $165.00 $1,086 -6.16
745–749 value added 749 80 154.50–176.00 $174.93 $1,310 +5.86
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1285 1285 2 139.00 $139.00 $1,786 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420 420 1 185.00 $185.00 $777 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
920 920 1 132.00 $132.00 $1,214 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
337 337 2 167.00 $167.00 $563 —
395 value added 395 14 172.00 $172.00 $679 +7.00
428 value added 428 5 170.00 $170.00 $728 +6.84
531 value added 531 9 160.00 $160.00 $850 -2.54
579 579 5 151.00 $151.00 $874 -4.00
636 636 3 140.00 $140.00 $890 +6.40
649 value added 649 78 175.00 $175.00 $1,136 +30.67
725–745 729 5 128.00–133.00 $129.02 $941 -2.98
737 value added 737 72 171.00 $171.00 $1,260 +25.77
795 795 1 132.00 $132.00 $1,049 —
815 value added 815 55 164.25 $164.25 $1,339 —
845 845 1 128.00 $128.00 $1,082 +28.00
925 925 2 114.00 $114.00 $1,054 —
965 965 3 121.00 $121.00 $1,168 —
995 995 1 111.00 $111.00 $1,104 —
1050 1050 1 107.50 $107.50 $1,129 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
480–485 483 2 128.00–147.00 $137.55 $664 +7.55
644 644 5 127.00 $127.00 $818 -5.00
655 655 2 108.00 $108.00 $707 -16.52
710 710 1 123.00 $123.00 $873 +5.00
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1155–1410 1252 5 111.00–119.00 $114.80 $1,437 —
1380 1380 1 115.00 $115.00 $1,587 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220 220 1 165.00 $165.00 $363 —
390 390 2 140.00–173.00 $156.50 $610 —
615 615 1 136.00 $136.00 $836 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 value added 330 1 216.00 $216.00 $713 —
697 697 2 143.00 $143.00 $997 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 122.50 $122.50 $478 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1080–1440 1268 80-85% 18 96.00–113.00 $105.48 $1,337 —
1425 1425 80-85% 1 73.00 $73.00 $1,040 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1285–1700 1441 75-80% 10 97.00–113.00 $104.18 $1,501 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
735 735 85-90% 1 64.00 $64.00 $470 —
705–910 813 85-90% 3 73.00–80.00 $75.61 $615 —
1115–1375 1206 85-90% 4 90.00–107.00 $99.12 $1,195 —
1575 1575 85-90% 1 50.00 $50.00 $788 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1760–1845 1803 2 101.00–111.00 $106.12 $1,913 -2.88
1650–2200 1866 4 114.00–125.00 $118.63 $2,214 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
905–1050 978 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 91.00–97.00 $94.22 $921

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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.