Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, May 30, 2023

953 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 $224.44/cwt +19.95 vs last sale · ≈ $1,484/hd at 661 lb · 156 head
heavy 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $196.40/cwt ≈ $1,911/hd at 973 lb · 115 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $240.50/cwt +1.44 vs last sale · ≈ $1,265/hd at 526 lb · 42 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 953 812 674
Feeder cattle 727 752 531
Slaughter cattle 217 58 119
Replacement cattle 9 2 24

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday feeder steers and heifers sold steady with very good demand for weaned packages. Very good demand for yearling steers and heifers. Slaughter cows and slaughter bulls sold steady to 2.00 lower 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
415 415 1 208.00 $208.00 $863 —
430 value added 430 1 238.00 $238.00 $1,023 +4.75
460–480 value added 473 4 225.00–238.00 $230.26 $1,089 -0.49
486 486 4 219.00 $219.00 $1,064 +21.00
526–530 value added 526 42 228.00–241.00 $240.50 $1,265 +0.57
568–590 value added 572 7 227.00–234.00 $232.11 $1,328 -3.70
585 585 2 208.00 $208.00 $1,217 -10.00
620–639 value added 639 41 212.00–224.25 $223.96 $1,431 -0.09
655–690 673 2 209.00–211.00 $209.97 $1,413 +16.97
650–694 value added 676 12 227.00–235.00 $228.72 $1,546 +15.72
706–745 value added 722 5 209.00–221.00 $216.04 $1,560 +0.60
745 745 1 204.00 $204.00 $1,520 +20.00
765–797 786 3 200.00–201.00 $200.68 $1,577 -0.32
802–805 803 3 188.00–197.00 $193.99 $1,558 -6.01
868–895 876 6 191.00–196.00 $191.85 $1,681 -8.15
973 fancy 973 115 196.40 $196.40 $1,911 —
1018 fancy 1018 53 190.60 $190.60 $1,940 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
465 465 1 170.00 $170.00 $790 -13.38
500 500 1 190.00 $190.00 $950 +30.00
630 630 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,292 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230 230 1 185.00 $185.00 $426 —
260–280 270 2 190.00–195.00 $192.59 $520 —
305–325 320 6 195.00–202.50 $199.55 $639 +9.01
370–373 372 4 203.00–205.00 $204.50 $761 +4.16
385 value added 385 1 217.00 $217.00 $835 -5.64
400–425 412 5 200.00–207.00 $203.46 $838 +0.11
438–446 value added 441 8 218.00–223.00 $221.10 $975 -1.61
455 455 1 210.00 $210.00 $956 —
455–477 value added 467 18 216.00–228.00 $220.01 $1,027 -15.36
515 515 1 190.00 $190.00 $978 -7.00
500–541 value added 518 21 205.00–222.00 $216.76 $1,123 -3.25
551–583 value added 569 20 212.00–224.00 $215.59 $1,227 +3.66
555–582 571 5 189.00–202.00 $196.31 $1,121 +0.84
600–636 value added 611 15 190.00–207.00 $196.12 $1,198 +1.82
617 617 2 187.00 $187.00 $1,154 —
661 value added 661 151 225.90 $225.90 $1,493 +28.48
656–685 665 5 175.00–183.00 $180.20 $1,198 +3.64
700–707 706 6 172.00–179.00 $177.84 $1,256 —
750 750 1 165.00 $165.00 $1,238 -10.98
761–763 value added 762 7 179.00–185.00 $182.43 $1,390 —
806 value added 806 4 169.00 $169.00 $1,362 —
805–835 815 3 142.00–157.00 $147.12 $1,199 —
905 905 6 151.00 $151.00 $1,367 +23.74
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 1 175.00 $175.00 $569 —
380 380 1 150.00 $150.00 $570 —
420–435 431 4 175.00–189.00 $182.57 $787 -0.92
480 480 1 180.00 $180.00 $864 —
557 557 2 172.00 $172.00 $958 +1.00
600–620 607 3 160.00–179.00 $172.53 $1,047 +31.53
740 740 1 165.00 $165.00 $1,221 —
750 750 1 158.00 $158.00 $1,185 —
830 830 1 131.00 $131.00 $1,087 —
855 855 1 128.00 $128.00 $1,094 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220 220 1 182.50 $182.50 $402 —
346 value added 346 4 220.00 $220.00 $761 —
360 value added 360 1 230.00 $230.00 $828 -8.94
411–440 value added 421 8 218.00–226.00 $221.45 $932 -10.86
425–435 430 2 210.00–217.50 $213.71 $919 +9.24
450 450 1 214.00 $214.00 $963 +4.00
462–480 value added 467 6 220.00–231.00 $223.88 $1,046 -1.14
500 value added 500 2 222.00 $222.00 $1,110 -7.34
550–590 value added 574 18 210.00–228.00 $222.98 $1,280 +7.17
590 590 1 208.00 $208.00 $1,227 —
617–635 value added 626 7 202.00–209.00 $205.31 $1,285 -3.65
665 value added 665 2 206.00–210.00 $208.00 $1,383 +11.82
660–695 673 3 174.00–198.00 $185.55 $1,249 —
725 725 1 171.00 $171.00 $1,240 -15.00
758–762 760 5 192.00–209.00 $202.18 $1,537 +23.18
867 867 2 195.00 $195.00 $1,691 +35.00
930 930 1 157.50 $157.50 $1,465 +3.50
960–965 964 4 160.00–166.00 $164.51 $1,586 —
1170 1170 1 108.00 $108.00 $1,264 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
225 225 1 160.00 $160.00 $360 —
340 340 1 200.00 $200.00 $680 —
475–495 485 2 182.00–197.50 $189.59 $920 +12.08
515–545 530 2 160.00–172.50 $166.07 $880 -13.93
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
700 700 1 164.00 $164.00 $1,148 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
385 385 1 122.50 $122.50 $472 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1040–1480 1244 80-85% 30 94.00–106.00 $100.96 $1,256 —
1145–1590 1285 80-85% 38 106.00–125.00 $112.86 $1,450 -3.71
1340–1605 1473 80-85% 2 88.00–90.00 $88.91 $1,310 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
790–1195 991 85-90% 8 75.00–84.00 $78.99 $783 —
860–1300 1055 85-90% 20 85.00–98.00 $90.99 $960 —
1020–1160 1090 85-90% 2 65.00–69.00 $66.87 $729 —
900–1330 1117 85-90% 23 98.00–110.00 $102.23 $1,142 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1580 1391 75-80% 8 90.00–105.00 $99.41 $1,383 —
1190–2110 1521 75-80% 36 106.00–127.00 $114.44 $1,741 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1270 1270 1 98.00 $98.00 $1,245 -22.10
1240–1655 1473 8 112.00–121.00 $117.21 $1,727 —
1260–2210 1799 24 124.00–145.00 $131.64 $2,368 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1115–1580 1360 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 1,025.00–1,500.00 $1,293.81
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
890 890 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 900.00 $900.00
1015 1015 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 975.00 $975.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1070–1270 1170 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,075.00–1,275.00 $1,183.55 —

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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.