Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, August 13, 2024

1,068 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $244.44/cwt +12.19 vs last sale · ≈ $2,156/hd at 882 lb · 344 head
light 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $244.78/cwt ≈ $2,056/hd at 840 lb · 120 head
light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $236.52/cwt +0.77 vs last sale · ≈ $2,190/hd at 926 lb · 112 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,068 418 1,382
Feeder cattle 1,016 389 1,305
Slaughter cattle 46 27 76
Replacement cattle 6 2 1

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday feeder steers under 600 lbs sold steady to 5.00 higher with good demand for weaned offerings. Steers and heifers 600-800 lbs traded 5.00 to 10.00 higher with good demand rebounding from last week's volatile market week. Yearling steers over 800 lbs traded steady to 3.00 higher with good demand. Feeder heifers traded mostly steady with moderate to good demand. Market active today with a good through attractive quality offering. Slaughter cows sold 6.00 to 10.00 higher with very good demand. 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
340 340 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,020 —
412–427 value added 422 6 322.50 $322.50 $1,361 -2.50
425 425 2 285.00 $285.00 $1,211 —
465 fancy 465 15 313.00 $313.00 $1,455 —
476–495 484 5 290.00–295.00 $292.95 $1,418 -7.05
507–540 value added 510 21 291.00–315.00 $312.41 $1,593 +25.25
540 540 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,512 —
555–560 558 2 279.00–283.00 $280.99 $1,568 +23.49
550–592 value added 583 17 291.00–295.00 $294.32 $1,716 +12.32
603–635 value added 623 26 270.00–291.00 $286.44 $1,785 +27.31
647 647 2 252.00 $252.00 $1,630 —
655–680 673 8 240.00–253.00 $248.38 $1,672 —
700–732 value added 731 34 262.50–264.75 $264.69 $1,935 —
829–847 840 120 244.50–245.00 $244.78 $2,056 —
870–882 fancy 876 113 244.00–245.00 $244.51 $2,142 —
861–897 thin fleshed 885 231 243.50–246.50 $244.40 $2,163 —
913–938 926 112 235.00–237.90 $236.52 $2,190 +8.02
966 966 9 227.50 $227.50 $2,198 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
530 530 1 255.00 $255.00 $1,352 —
575 575 1 267.00 $267.00 $1,535 —
615–625 620 2 241.00–242.00 $241.50 $1,497 —
710 710 3 235.00 $235.00 $1,668 —
840 840 1 224.00 $224.00 $1,882 —
935 935 1 219.00 $219.00 $2,048 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 1 272.00 $272.00 $898 —
445 445 1 275.00 $275.00 $1,224 —
450–485 468 2 260.00–277.50 $269.08 $1,259 —
560 560 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,400 —
630 630 1 241.00 $241.00 $1,518 +11.00
860 860 1 212.00 $212.00 $1,823 +22.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
312 312 2 282.50 $282.50 $881 —
365 365 2 250.00 $250.00 $912 —
410 410 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,025 —
410 value added 410 2 269.00 $269.00 $1,103 -6.00
466–470 value added 469 29 264.00–268.50 $267.27 $1,253 +7.27
491 491 3 254.00 $254.00 $1,247 —
500 500 2 246.00 $246.00 $1,230 —
505–537 value added 514 7 251.00–254.00 $253.10 $1,301 -1.87
551–595 value added 562 13 250.00–254.00 $251.87 $1,416 -4.28
585 585 1 242.00 $242.00 $1,416 —
601–607 603 5 228.00–230.00 $228.80 $1,380 -8.70
660–687 676 5 222.00–232.00 $225.91 $1,527 -4.09
678–693 value added 691 26 238.00–250.00 $248.64 $1,718 —
705–715 710 2 208.00–223.00 $215.45 $1,530 —
842 842 55 224.50 $224.50 $1,890 +40.99
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350 350 1 220.00 $220.00 $770 —
411–440 418 4 230.00–233.00 $232.21 $971 —
508 508 3 234.00 $234.00 $1,189 —
650–677 672 5 210.00–217.00 $215.65 $1,449 —
715 715 1 182.00 $182.00 $1,301 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1055–1131 1122 8 179.00–188.00 $186.94 $2,097 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205 205 1 290.00 $290.00 $594 —
270 270 1 292.50 $292.50 $790 —
300–335 322 7 280.00–295.00 $290.09 $934 —
405–445 438 6 262.00–291.00 $283.40 $1,241 -1.77
460–466 463 6 267.00–293.00 $279.92 $1,296 —
570–590 584 11 249.00–268.00 $263.63 $1,540 —
610–640 625 2 230.00–240.00 $234.88 $1,468 —
725 725 1 215.00 $215.00 $1,559 —
765 765 2 215.00 $215.00 $1,645 +20.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 1 241.00 $241.00 $831 —
400–415 410 3 260.00–275.00 $270.12 $1,107 —
480 480 1 255.00 $255.00 $1,224 —
575–580 579 4 236.00–240.00 $236.99 $1,372 +24.99
640 640 1 228.00 $228.00 $1,459 +21.23
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
760 760 2 171.00 $171.00 $1,300 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,102 —
645 645 1 202.50 $202.50 $1,306 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1055–1670 1367 75-80% 12 139.00–148.00 $143.47 $1,961 +24.89
1445–1950 1646 75-80% 6 148.00–161.00 $153.24 $2,522 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
820–1032 919 85-90% 3 118.00–132.00 $127.84 $1,175 —
940–1125 1013 85-90% 6 133.00–144.00 $138.63 $1,404 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1220–1225 1223 80-85% 2 144.00–145.00 $144.50 $1,767 +10.54
1020–1745 1337 80-85% 7 150.00–163.00 $155.55 $2,080 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1285–2035 1565 5 157.00–173.00 $164.67 $2,577 —
1495–1880 1697 3 175.00–184.00 $181.36 $3,078 —

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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
1045–1105 1075 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,550.00–1,900.00 $1,720.12 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1075 1075 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 2,450.00 $2,450.00 —

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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.