Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, July 29, 2025

295 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $337.35/cwt ≈ $2,746/hd at 814 lb · 190 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 295 355 1,175
Feeder cattle 266 303 1,132
Slaughter cattle 29 48 43
Replacement cattle — 4 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

No trends in the feeder market due to limited head to head comparisons, however the feeder market appeared steady and with good demand for weaned cattle. Slaughter cows appeared sharply higher with a limited supply and strong demand. Several days of triple digit heat index has limited cattle movement causing increased selection pressure in the feeder market and higher premiums being paid for quality in both the feeder and slaughter markets.

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
190 190 1 400.00 $400.00 $760 —
275 275 1 410.00 $410.00 $1,128 —
615 615 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,999 -27.50
632 value added 632 5 363.00 $363.00 $2,294 —
650 650 1 322.50 $322.50 $2,096 —
755 value added 755 2 321.00 $321.00 $2,424 -2.43
802–842 value added 814 189 335.75–340.00 $337.47 $2,747 —
825 825 1 315.00 $315.00 $2,599 —
1028 1028 3 284.00 $284.00 $2,920 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
415–440 432 3 345.00–360.00 $349.81 $1,511 -15.19
550–590 580 4 335.00–340.00 $336.19 $1,950 +3.19
605 605 1 305.00 $305.00 $1,845 -15.00
735 735 2 300.00 $300.00 $2,205 —
910 910 1 212.00 $212.00 $1,929 -29.00
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
710 710 1 275.00 $275.00 $1,952 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
520 520 1 312.50 $312.50 $1,625 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1210 1210 1 212.00 $212.00 $2,565 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
365 365 1 362.50 $362.50 $1,323 -2.50
410–415 413 2 355.00–365.00 $359.97 $1,487 -2.53
505 505 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,666 +7.50
550 550 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,705 +6.09
560 560 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,568 -23.91
575–580 value added 578 3 335.00–338.00 $335.99 $1,942 -4.01
610 610 1 297.50 $297.50 $1,815 -29.00
695 695 1 316.00 $316.00 $2,196 +29.78
770 770 1 269.00 $269.00 $2,071 -4.31
825 825 1 285.00 $285.00 $2,351 +12.50
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 305.00 $305.00 $1,342 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
412 412 2 365.00 $365.00 $1,504 —
560–585 578 4 320.00–337.50 $324.43 $1,875 -34.65
601–635 610 4 300.00–318.00 $313.31 $1,911 -12.86
655 655 1 312.50 $312.50 $2,047 —
727 727 2 280.00 $280.00 $2,036 -10.00
790 790 1 244.00 $244.00 $1,928 —
880 880 1 245.00 $245.00 $2,156 +10.00
915 915 1 232.50 $232.50 $2,127 —
985 985 1 225.00 $225.00 $2,216 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
450 450 1 347.50 $347.50 $1,564 +7.50
570 570 1 315.00 $315.00 $1,796 +15.00
615–630 623 2 280.00–290.00 $284.94 $1,775 +7.44
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
565 565 1 315.00 $315.00 $1,780 —
675 675 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,822 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
585 585 85-90% 1 110.00 $110.00 $644 —
785–1170 874 85-90% 5 130.00–150.00 $143.57 $1,255 —
1235–1240 1238 85-90% 2 164.00–182.00 $172.98 $2,141 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1150–1380 1253 80-85% 8 174.00–194.00 $182.86 $2,291 +23.37
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1460–1605 1540 75-80% 3 177.00–195.00 $184.32 $2,839 —
1510–1685 1615 75-80% 3 165.00 $165.00 $2,665 -5.91

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1710 1710 1 215.00 $215.00 $3,676 —
1780–1955 1868 2 227.00–228.00 $227.48 $4,249 +18.48
YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1455–1640 1548 2 203.00 $203.00 $3,142 +6.75

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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.