Cattle Market Pulse

Blue Grass Stockyards (Tuesday) Market Report, Lexington, KY

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 28, 2026

734 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $462.19/cwt +11.67 vs last sale · ≈ $2,679/hd at 580 lb · 137 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $422.64/cwt +8.63 vs last sale · ≈ $2,252/hd at 533 lb · 105 head
light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $356.46/cwt +19.46 vs last sale · ≈ $3,289/hd at 923 lb · 59 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 734 921 668
Feeder cattle 684 849 563
Slaughter cattle 46 65 89
Replacement cattle 4 7 16

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday the feeder market was spotty with an average quality offering. Feeder steers 300 lbs and under appeared steady, while the 400-650 lbs steers were steady to 6.00 lower or greater in spots with a good supply and moderate demand. Yearling steers appeared stronger with a good supply but limited head to head comparisons. Feeder heifers 300-400 lbs were 4.00 to 6.00 lower, while the 500-600 lbs heifers were mostly steady with a good supply. Buyers were active today, however the increasing supply of heavier conditioned in the market is limiting some buyers interest and increasing the price spreads in most weight classes. Slaughter cows were steady with a good supply and good demand and no trends on slaughter bulls due to a limited supply.

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
275–290 278 6 595.00–610.00 $597.61 $1,661 -12.39
320–322 321 3 540.00–580.00 $553.28 $1,776 —
400–435 415 6 510.00–527.50 $521.12 $2,163 -8.49
408–426 fancy 419 16 541.00–557.50 $550.72 $2,308 -23.77
453 fancy 453 4 521.00 $521.00 $2,360 -36.50
463–496 488 12 490.00–492.50 $490.59 $2,394 +13.59
505–506 value added 506 15 498.00–502.50 $500.70 $2,534 —
511–530 520 11 452.50–475.00 $460.09 $2,392 -25.10
562–585 value added 579 131 453.00–464.00 $463.44 $2,683 -15.31
592 592 6 435.00 $435.00 $2,575 -3.58
607–622 value added 618 7 443.00–445.00 $443.56 $2,741 +0.47
655–688 value added 681 50 402.50–412.50 $407.23 $2,773 -7.47
700–717 707 6 390.00–400.00 $394.21 $2,787 -0.79
755–790 772 5 361.00–373.00 $365.94 $2,825 +34.94
816–835 829 17 340.00–369.00 $360.61 $2,989 +20.95
870–877 873 5 345.00–350.00 $347.01 $3,029 +8.01
910–915 913 2 337.00–345.00 $341.01 $3,113 +4.01
923 value added 923 57 357.00 $357.00 $3,295 —
953–958 956 7 327.00–340.00 $334.45 $3,197 —
1000 1000 1 301.00 $301.00 $3,010 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
610 610 6 375.00 $375.00 $2,288 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210 210 1 510.00 $510.00 $1,071 —
540 540 1 420.00 $420.00 $2,268 -50.00
902 902 2 293.00 $293.00 $2,643 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
530 530 2 429.00 $429.00 $2,274 +16.00

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 340 1 500.00 $500.00 $1,700 -22.50
350–395 376 6 492.50–505.00 $496.88 $1,868 -11.61
400–423 417 5 440.00–465.00 $460.02 $1,918 -10.20
405–435 fancy 428 21 472.50–480.00 $473.74 $2,028 —
450–459 fancy 456 7 445.00–447.50 $445.70 $2,032 —
473–498 491 19 418.00–432.50 $426.31 $2,093 -30.89
500–542 521 32 397.50–420.00 $412.24 $2,148 +2.87
521–544 value added 538 73 425.00–428.00 $427.20 $2,298 -1.66
578 578 3 385.00 $385.00 $2,225 -3.86
607 607 2 395.00 $395.00 $2,398 -6.35
600–637 622 8 360.00–383.00 $372.29 $2,316 -1.62
650–656 655 6 372.50–375.00 $374.58 $2,453 +10.45
650–690 677 11 345.00–367.50 $355.43 $2,406 -8.70
706 706 3 357.00 $357.00 $2,520 —
768 768 6 369.00 $369.00 $2,834 +22.67
793 793 3 330.00 $330.00 $2,617 -16.33
857 857 2 312.50 $312.50 $2,678 -6.50
990 990 1 281.00 $281.00 $2,782 +11.00
1075 1075 1 291.00 $291.00 $3,128 —
1145 1145 1 239.00 $239.00 $2,737 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
215 215 1 400.00 $400.00 $860 -5.00
445 445 1 370.00 $370.00 $1,646 —
483 483 3 385.00 $385.00 $1,860 +44.00
686 686 4 280.00 $280.00 $1,921 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
250 250 2 500.00 $500.00 $1,250 —
535 535 1 385.00 $385.00 $2,060 +14.00
560–595 578 2 362.50–371.00 $366.88 $2,121 +37.88
1045 1045 1 245.00 $245.00 $2,560 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 1 550.00 $550.00 $1,512 -10.00
327 327 2 550.00 $550.00 $1,798 —
413–420 415 4 495.00–505.00 $502.47 $2,085 —
471–490 479 9 500.00–502.50 $501.14 $2,400 +0.73
697 697 2 351.00 $351.00 $2,446 —
700 700 1 367.50 $367.50 $2,572 +42.80
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 2 442.50 $442.50 $2,080 -6.50
530 530 2 397.50 $397.50 $2,107 -14.56
895 895 1 215.00 $215.00 $1,924 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
780 780 85-90% 1 127.00 $127.00 $991 —
875–1090 957 85-90% 6 132.00–152.00 $141.05 $1,350 —
1010–1265 1115 85-90% 6 154.00–183.00 $166.37 $1,855 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1090–1430 1235 80-85% 12 160.00–178.00 $169.28 $2,091 -2.39
1255 1255 80-85% 1 153.00 $153.00 $1,920 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1365–1580 1464 75-80% 7 173.00–179.00 $176.03 $2,577 —
1420–1705 1587 75-80% 3 182.00–184.00 $183.31 $2,909 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1580 1580 1 214.00 $214.00 $3,381 —

↑ Back to top

Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
780–1160 970 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 2 182.50–183.00 $182.80 $1,773
945–1150 1058 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 3 201.00–225.00 $208.14 $2,202

↑ Back to top

Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
820 820 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,550.00 $2,550.00 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1435 1435 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 1 4,050.00 $4,050.00 —

↑ Back to top

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.