Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, March 17, 2026

294 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $449.75/cwt +40.38 vs last sale · ≈ $2,932/hd at 652 lb · 71 head
light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $329.75/cwt +6.80 vs last sale · ≈ $3,113/hd at 944 lb · 35 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 steers $515.33/cwt -12.55 vs last sale · ≈ $2,496/hd at 484 lb · 15 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 294 907 1,142
Feeder cattle 280 851 1,075
Slaughter cattle 14 51 67
Replacement cattle — 5 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday both the feeder and slaughter markets appeared stronger with a limited, but good quality offering. Feeder steers 400-600 lbs were mostly 4.00 to 8.00 higher, or greater in spots with a limited supply and strong demand for quality feeders. Yearling steers appeared stronger as well but with limited head to head comparisons. Feeder heifers 300-600 lbs were steady to 6.00 higher with a limited supply and good demand. Slaughter cows appeared 5.00 to 6.00 higher with a light test and no trends on slaughter bulls.

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
330 thin fleshed 330 2 575.00 $575.00 $1,898 —
354 thin fleshed 354 6 580.00 $580.00 $2,053 —
413 fancy 413 3 525.00 $525.00 $2,168 —
425 425 1 502.50 $502.50 $2,136 +6.64
482 fancy 482 11 520.00 $520.00 $2,506 +3.00
491 491 4 502.50 $502.50 $2,467 +12.75
550 value added 550 14 482.50 $482.50 $2,654 +22.14
637 637 5 433.00 $433.00 $2,758 +9.43
652 value added 652 71 449.75 $449.75 $2,932 +34.75
732 732 2 357.50 $357.50 $2,617 -13.63
944 value added 944 35 329.75 $329.75 $3,113 +5.86
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
496 496 3 435.00 $435.00 $2,158 +0.41
615 615 1 397.50 $397.50 $2,445 +30.00
1080 1080 1 242.50 $242.50 $2,619 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210 thin fleshed 210 2 580.00 $580.00 $1,218 —
235 235 1 470.00 $470.00 $1,104 —
270 thin fleshed 270 6 550.00 $550.00 $1,485 —
315 315 2 497.50 $497.50 $1,567 +22.33
361–385 368 9 465.00–487.50 $478.19 $1,760 +15.81
400–440 426 9 431.00–470.00 $445.80 $1,899 +6.74
478–495 483 8 430.00–439.00 $433.34 $2,093 -13.41
500–520 510 2 400.00–410.00 $404.90 $2,065 +7.90
566 value added 566 3 415.00 $415.00 $2,349 -1.75
605–647 628 14 357.50–400.00 $378.83 $2,379 +30.35
790 790 1 207.50 $207.50 $1,639 -103.48
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 410 1 390.00 $390.00 $1,599 -26.25
588 588 3 351.00 $351.00 $2,064 -1.49
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
765 765 2 210.00 $210.00 $1,606 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270 270 1 530.00 $530.00 $1,431 +40.00
278 fancy 278 3 607.50 $607.50 $1,689 —
340 340 1 555.00 $555.00 $1,887 +56.25
340 fancy 340 1 630.00 $630.00 $2,142 +15.00
350–355 353 2 525.00–565.00 $545.14 $1,924 +51.43
415 fancy 415 1 527.50 $527.50 $2,189 +31.21
425 425 1 500.00 $500.00 $2,125 +45.06
450–465 458 3 485.00–500.00 $491.94 $2,253 +23.19
460–482 fancy 475 3 520.00–522.50 $520.81 $2,474 +16.57
505–531 fancy 516 10 500.00–522.50 $516.62 $2,666 +79.57
505–545 525 2 465.00–475.00 $469.81 $2,467 +62.31
550–575 563 4 447.50–465.00 $456.69 $2,571 +49.19
607 607 2 417.50 $417.50 $2,534 +14.20
655–685 670 2 399.00–401.00 $399.98 $2,680 —
710 710 1 360.00 $360.00 $2,556 —
767 fancy 767 2 355.00 $355.00 $2,723 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220 220 1 515.00 $515.00 $1,133 —
357 357 2 430.00 $430.00 $1,535 +30.00
515–530 520 3 400.00–412.50 $404.25 $2,102 —
665 665 1 372.50 $372.50 $2,477 —
705 705 1 320.00 $320.00 $2,256 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
490 490 85-90% 1 100.00 $100.00 $490 —
945–985 965 85-90% 2 149.00–159.00 $154.10 $1,487 +13.84
1075–1100 1088 85-90% 2 170.00–175.00 $172.53 $1,877 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1320 1320 80-85% 1 169.00 $169.00 $2,231 —
1215–2265 1740 80-85% 2 178.00–189.00 $185.16 $3,222 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1460–1690 1558 75-80% 3 179.00–193.00 $187.50 $2,921 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1705 1705 1 200.00 $200.00 $3,410 —

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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.