Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 2, 2024

516 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 $238.27/cwt +17.92 vs last sale · ≈ $1,733/hd at 727 lb · 113 head
light 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $248.00/cwt ≈ $2,053/hd at 828 lb · 65 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $246.38/cwt -4.07 vs last sale · ≈ $1,421/hd at 577 lb · 25 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 516 686 932
Feeder cattle 466 618 832
Slaughter cattle 39 50 99
Replacement cattle 11 18 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday feeder steers and heifers sold steady in a lite test. Very good demand for yearling packages. Slaughter cows and slaughter bulls sold 3.00 to 4.00 higher in a lite test 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
367 value added 367 2 319.00 $319.00 $1,171 +1.58
450–485 471 4 271.00–285.00 $277.43 $1,307 -20.07
508 508 4 281.00 $281.00 $1,427 +1.00
580–592 590 5 270.00–271.00 $270.80 $1,598 -12.10
600–613 value added 604 13 277.00–290.00 $285.42 $1,724 +0.35
630 thin fleshed 630 5 297.00 $297.00 $1,871 —
645–647 646 3 252.00–257.00 $253.66 $1,639 —
660–669 value added 667 11 258.00–287.00 $279.17 $1,862 +3.70
828 fancy 828 65 248.00 $248.00 $2,053 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
505–530 518 2 257.00–267.00 $261.88 $1,357 +11.18
610–635 623 2 235.00–245.00 $240.10 $1,496 —
710–735 723 2 235.00–237.00 $236.02 $1,706 —
800 800 1 203.00 $203.00 $1,624 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
462 462 2 230.00 $230.00 $1,063 —
555 555 1 194.00 $194.00 $1,077 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255 255 1 270.00 $270.00 $688 —
310 310 1 273.00 $273.00 $846 -9.52
357–395 370 3 293.00–301.00 $295.85 $1,095 +5.86
390 value added 390 1 309.00 $309.00 $1,205 —
400–435 value added 415 5 274.00–301.00 $292.97 $1,216 +8.63
445 445 2 264.00 $264.00 $1,175 +7.75
450–480 value added 461 9 263.00–282.00 $272.77 $1,257 +0.45
450–475 463 2 245.00–250.00 $247.43 $1,146 -7.07
500–530 value added 508 11 251.00–255.00 $253.43 $1,287 -29.25
505–545 531 7 244.00–251.00 $247.43 $1,314 +3.43
552–590 575 22 238.00–251.00 $243.75 $1,402 -1.25
587–590 value added 588 3 261.00–275.00 $265.68 $1,562 +13.18
630 value added 630 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,512 -11.42
627–637 632 4 231.00–232.00 $231.50 $1,463 +1.90
650–685 661 14 228.00–236.00 $230.19 $1,522 +2.19
726–729 fancy 727 111 238.00–239.00 $238.37 $1,733 —
745 745 2 233.00 $233.00 $1,736 —
816 816 4 199.00 $199.00 $1,624 —
827 value added 827 11 220.00 $220.00 $1,819 -2.00
881 881 3 195.00 $195.00 $1,718 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
180 180 1 232.50 $232.50 $418 —
300 300 1 265.00 $265.00 $795 —
445 445 1 238.00 $238.00 $1,059 -12.00
455–485 472 5 221.00–236.00 $229.85 $1,085 -13.17
575 575 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,351 -6.00
641 641 3 194.00 $194.00 $1,244 -21.17
680 680 1 211.00 $211.00 $1,435 +41.00
739 739 7 184.00 $184.00 $1,360 —
905–915 910 2 149.00–163.00 $155.96 $1,419 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
480 480 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,152 -3.00
569–570 569 7 213.00–235.00 $230.99 $1,314 —
600 600 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,200 —
652 652 2 205.00 $205.00 $1,337 -5.00
800 800 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,440 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 410 1 210.00 $210.00 $861 -3.00
540 540 1 193.00 $193.00 $1,042 —
575–591 587 5 185.00–202.00 $189.53 $1,113 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
298 298 3 294.00 $294.00 $876 —
408–445 417 4 261.00–281.00 $266.33 $1,111 -23.73
432 value added 432 2 292.00 $292.00 $1,261 -21.00
475 475 1 273.00 $273.00 $1,297 -14.34
511 value added 511 3 284.00 $284.00 $1,451 -15.63
505–540 514 4 270.00–271.00 $270.74 $1,392 +10.74
550–590 575 7 251.00–271.00 $264.23 $1,519 -28.27
640–642 641 3 231.00–248.00 $236.65 $1,517 —
665–685 675 2 223.00–232.00 $227.57 $1,536 -10.43
755–785 767 3 201.00–221.00 $211.32 $1,621 +1.32
825–835 830 2 191.00–193.00 $192.01 $1,594 +6.01
880 880 1 185.00 $185.00 $1,628 -20.00
930–935 933 2 172.00–181.00 $176.51 $1,647 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
515 515 2 260.00 $260.00 $1,339 —
600 600 1 221.00 $221.00 $1,326 —
690 690 1 216.00 $216.00 $1,490 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
245 245 1 280.00 $280.00 $686 —
305 305 1 285.00 $285.00 $869 —
500 500 1 241.00 $241.00 $1,205 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
520 520 1 201.00 $201.00 $1,045 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1005–1145 1075 80-85% 2 112.00–118.00 $114.80 $1,234 —
1020–1715 1246 80-85% 11 122.00–148.00 $131.36 $1,637 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
885–955 920 85-90% 2 82.00–88.00 $85.11 $783 —
815–1160 1016 85-90% 5 95.00–103.00 $99.52 $1,011 —
890–1115 1028 85-90% 3 114.00–124.00 $117.94 $1,212 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1265 1265 75-80% 1 116.00 $116.00 $1,467 —
1295–1660 1430 75-80% 6 125.00–145.00 $131.62 $1,882 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
2000–2135 2068 2 153.00–166.00 $159.29 $3,294 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1205–1235 1220 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 1,825.00–1,975.00 $1,900.92

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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
1070–1480 1298 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 2,100.00–2,500.00 $2,349.71 —

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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.