Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, March 12, 2024

1,117 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $247.90/cwt +12.91 vs last sale · ≈ $1,911/hd at 771 lb · 135 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $287.82/cwt +31.59 vs last sale · ≈ $1,513/hd at 526 lb · 121 head
light 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $245.83/cwt +12.79 vs last sale · ≈ $1,999/hd at 813 lb · 73 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,117 804 959
Feeder cattle 1,048 741 880
Slaughter cattle 63 62 75
Replacement cattle 6 1 4

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday good quality weaned steer packages traded sharply higher with very good demand. Yearling steers sold 5.00 to 10.00 higher; some sharply higher in a limited comparison. Feeder heifers sold 5.00 to 10.00 higher; some good quality weaned 400-600 lb packages traded sharply higher with very good demand. Active market with an attractive quality offering. Slaughter cows sold 2.00 to 5.00 higher with very good demand. Slaughter bulls sold 5.00 higher with very 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
282 value added 282 2 325.00 $325.00 $916 —
302–330 value added 311 3 337.50–380.00 $364.98 $1,135 —
345 345 1 312.50 $312.50 $1,078 —
363 363 3 310.00 $310.00 $1,125 -2.50
357–395 value added 375 6 325.00–377.50 $355.72 $1,334 +14.72
400–445 value added 420 55 310.00–400.00 $366.46 $1,539 +31.81
455–495 value added 474 24 297.50–372.50 $339.14 $1,608 +16.47
482 482 2 269.00 $269.00 $1,297 -15.75
505 505 1 275.00 $275.00 $1,389 —
501–545 value added 535 47 306.00–337.00 $325.37 $1,741 +26.32
550 550 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,485 —
552–596 value added 579 9 289.00–310.00 $295.19 $1,709 +4.57
600–645 value added 609 38 261.00–307.00 $296.73 $1,807 +25.34
615 615 1 241.00 $241.00 $1,482 —
650–693 value added 667 15 255.00–282.50 $270.39 $1,804 -13.72
695 695 1 241.00 $241.00 $1,675 —
701–740 value added 716 63 244.00–269.00 $260.53 $1,865 +10.90
760–785 value added 771 135 241.00–249.00 $247.90 $1,911 +7.50
813 value added 813 67 247.70 $247.70 $2,014 —
802–826 815 6 222.00–230.00 $224.96 $1,833 -9.52
855–896 value added 883 49 228.50–233.50 $229.44 $2,026 +3.44
895 895 1 214.00 $214.00 $1,915 —
907 fancy 907 7 219.00 $219.00 $1,986 —
955 955 2 204.00 $204.00 $1,948 —
1091 1091 4 203.00 $203.00 $2,215 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
595 595 1 252.50 $252.50 $1,502 —
700–715 708 2 221.00–232.50 $226.81 $1,606 —
780 780 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,716 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
597 597 2 275.00 $275.00 $1,642 +12.00
1120 1120 1 194.00 $194.00 $2,173 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305–330 value added 311 4 310.00–332.50 $321.02 $998 —
327–340 331 3 274.00–290.00 $279.47 $925 —
360 value added 360 6 307.50–310.00 $308.33 $1,110 —
360–390 383 5 285.00–300.00 $292.88 $1,122 +6.31
400–447 value added 419 19 274.00–299.00 $289.70 $1,214 +16.83
420 420 2 265.00 $265.00 $1,113 +11.38
460 460 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,104 -12.99
457–495 value added 481 13 257.50–280.00 $265.14 $1,275 -7.66
503–540 value added 525 111 251.00–298.50 $291.76 $1,532 +30.76
505–546 532 10 240.00–251.00 $244.12 $1,299 +6.95
560–586 577 6 235.00–248.00 $239.20 $1,380 +2.19
550–593 value added 581 36 251.00–265.00 $262.67 $1,526 +1.40
617–643 value added 629 42 238.00–255.00 $251.22 $1,580 -15.50
630 630 1 227.00 $227.00 $1,430 +3.40
650–686 value added 656 38 238.00–255.00 $251.47 $1,650 +20.14
685–686 686 4 216.00–234.00 $220.50 $1,513 +18.06
701–743 value added 729 29 219.00–235.00 $230.98 $1,684 —
745 745 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,564 +19.83
750–789 value added 762 22 229.00–230.00 $229.62 $1,750 +20.01
757–790 779 18 216.00–221.00 $217.44 $1,694 —
824 824 8 225.50 $225.50 $1,858 +36.50
860 860 5 206.00 $206.00 $1,772 —
875 875 1 182.00 $182.00 $1,592 —
890 value added 890 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,958 +24.00
910 value added 910 1 219.00 $219.00 $1,993 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
475–480 478 2 220.00–231.00 $225.53 $1,078 —
560 560 1 227.00 $227.00 $1,271 +21.09
602 602 2 214.00 $214.00 $1,288 +24.00
705 705 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,410 +43.71
750–790 770 2 163.00–201.00 $181.51 $1,398 —
900 900 1 170.00 $170.00 $1,530 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 value added 330 1 320.00 $320.00 $1,056 -7.00
350–390 value added 357 6 340.00–385.00 $376.80 $1,345 —
417 value added 417 2 332.00 $332.00 $1,384 +29.55
455–490 value added 469 4 313.00–375.00 $347.53 $1,630 +43.62
465–480 472 3 280.00–285.00 $283.34 $1,337 -9.16
501–520 value added 506 4 303.00–315.00 $306.08 $1,549 +24.18
547 547 2 261.00 $261.00 $1,428 —
550 value added 550 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,540 +1.79
550–558 556 4 260.00–265.00 $263.76 $1,467 -7.24
600–630 value added 615 4 247.00–252.50 $249.12 $1,532 -15.88
770 770 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,578 -7.75
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205 205 1 290.00 $290.00 $594 —
280 280 1 297.50 $297.50 $833 —
360 360 1 241.00 $241.00 $868 -19.00
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
540 540 1 202.00 $202.00 $1,091 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1255 1255 75-80% 1 102.00 $102.00 $1,280 —
1085–1735 1398 75-80% 19 119.00–136.00 $123.96 $1,733 —
1425–1615 1508 75-80% 4 116.00–119.00 $117.55 $1,773 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1120–1425 1220 80-85% 4 114.00–117.00 $116.04 $1,416 +5.77
1040–1905 1331 80-85% 15 118.00–130.00 $123.69 $1,646 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
970 970 85-90% 1 108.00 $108.00 $1,048 —
915–1215 1066 85-90% 6 112.00–126.00 $119.96 $1,279 —
940–1175 1075 85-90% 3 84.00–97.00 $89.03 $957 —
1140 1140 85-90% 1 63.00 $63.00 $718 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1040–2225 1649 7 134.00–153.00 $145.56 $2,400 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1265–1595 1430 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,850.00–1,900.00 $1,872.12

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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.