Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, January 14, 2025

1,218 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 $277.66/cwt ≈ $2,163/hd at 779 lb · 179 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $282.79/cwt +35.29 vs last sale · ≈ $1,779/hd at 629 lb · 171 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $309.73/cwt +47.23 vs last sale · ≈ $1,800/hd at 581 lb · 141 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,218 410 115
Feeder cattle 1,161 350 82
Slaughter cattle 50 37 33
Replacement cattle 7 23 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Limited market comparison to last Tuesday due to lite receipts last week with winter storm; however market noticeably higher for all classes compared to before the Holiday break. Market very active with good buyer participation for all classes.

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
305 305 1 347.50 $347.50 $1,060 —
410–425 value added 415 6 365.00–387.50 $377.34 $1,566 —
450–495 value added 479 16 342.00–373.00 $357.87 $1,714 —
510 510 1 292.00 $292.00 $1,489 -23.00
500–544 value added 529 29 319.00–349.00 $330.37 $1,748 —
550–593 value added 575 18 306.00–321.00 $312.75 $1,798 —
582 582 2 300.00 $300.00 $1,746 —
615–640 625 9 281.00–291.00 $285.31 $1,783 —
602–647 value added 627 98 293.00–323.00 $306.57 $1,922 —
650–689 value added 679 17 288.00–300.00 $298.97 $2,030 —
665–691 680 7 273.00–281.00 $277.42 $1,886 +7.92
701–745 value added 711 50 259.00–292.00 $282.58 $2,009 —
728 728 4 250.00 $250.00 $1,820 +3.99
776 776 3 245.00 $245.00 $1,901 —
760–792 value added 779 176 250.00–281.00 $278.22 $2,167 —
811 value added 811 5 257.00 $257.00 $2,084 —
810–826 818 8 245.00–252.00 $248.53 $2,033 —
835 fancy 835 23 274.75 $274.75 $2,294 —
889 fancy 889 57 263.75 $263.75 $2,345 —
920 fancy 920 57 255.10 $255.10 $2,347 —
937 937 4 231.00 $231.00 $2,164 —
1045 1045 1 215.00 $215.00 $2,247 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420–435 428 2 282.50–309.00 $295.98 $1,267 —
450–470 460 5 263.00–302.50 $279.54 $1,286 —
560 560 1 261.00 $261.00 $1,462 +11.00
615–631 628 5 266.00–270.00 $266.78 $1,675 —
657 657 2 236.00 $236.00 $1,551 —
800 800 1 229.00 $229.00 $1,832 —
905 905 1 224.00 $224.00 $2,027 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
630 630 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,512 —
915 915 8 235.00 $235.00 $2,150 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
307–340 value added 318 3 327.50–330.00 $328.39 $1,044 —
320 320 1 302.50 $302.50 $968 +50.00
370–377 value added 375 3 312.50–317.50 $315.85 $1,184 —
410–444 value added 435 7 303.00–329.00 $308.50 $1,342 —
470–475 473 2 265.00–280.00 $272.46 $1,289 —
455–495 value added 482 25 282.50–320.00 $307.10 $1,480 —
503–528 518 10 277.00–291.00 $282.44 $1,463 +14.94
500–536 value added 524 11 291.00–300.00 $295.17 $1,547 —
563–588 value added 581 138 287.00–317.50 $310.43 $1,804 —
582–595 586 3 275.00–279.00 $277.65 $1,627 +15.15
615 615 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,507 -2.50
610–648 value added 629 170 262.00–298.00 $283.01 $1,780 —
653–695 667 24 243.00–251.50 $248.96 $1,661 —
670 value added 670 9 272.00 $272.00 $1,822 —
704–725 value added 710 49 245.00–263.00 $253.31 $1,799 -2.19
730 730 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,679 -7.50
764–781 value added 770 8 239.00–251.00 $246.44 $1,898 -3.36
770 770 1 239.00 $239.00 $1,840 —
830 830 1 216.00 $216.00 $1,793 —
815–847 value added 835 11 236.00–248.00 $242.91 $2,028 -4.09
890 890 1 222.00 $222.00 $1,976 —
930–935 933 3 203.00–211.00 $205.66 $1,919 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
475 475 1 265.00 $265.00 $1,259 —
560 560 1 269.00 $269.00 $1,506 —
668 668 3 231.00 $231.00 $1,543 —
750 750 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,650 —
870 870 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,740 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1465–1560 1525 3 140.00–157.00 $149.86 $2,285 —
1520–1715 1618 2 158.00–173.00 $165.95 $2,685 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
685 685 1 232.00 $232.00 $1,589 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
477 value added 477 2 346.00 $346.00 $1,650 —
748 748 3 245.00 $245.00 $1,833 —
896 896 3 211.00 $211.00 $1,891 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
735 735 1 242.00 $242.00 $1,779 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1140–1455 1333 75-80% 4 130.00–133.00 $131.44 $1,752 —
1310–1865 1553 75-80% 12 143.00–155.00 $147.42 $2,289 —
1275–2180 1648 75-80% 7 138.00–142.00 $140.01 $2,307 +5.76
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1055–1345 1245 80-85% 6 125.00–133.00 $128.47 $1,599 +1.28
1175–1430 1289 80-85% 4 134.00–137.00 $135.57 $1,747 +1.58
1485 1485 80-85% 1 143.00 $143.00 $2,124 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
925–1325 1089 85-90% 4 122.00–129.00 $125.54 $1,367 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1540 1540 1 148.00 $148.00 $2,279 —
1815–1990 1897 3 167.00–171.00 $169.39 $3,213 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1030 1030 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 184.00 $184.00 $1,895

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1255 1255 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,400.00 $2,400.00

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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
2195 2195 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 3,075.00 $3,075.00 —

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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.