Cattle Market Pulse

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

Lexington, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, September 29, 2026

1,018 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $319.96/cwt -9.79 vs last sale · ≈ $2,983/hd at 932 lb · 217 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $323.61/cwt -3.34 vs last sale · ≈ $2,835/hd at 876 lb · 132 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $356.22/cwt +0.75 vs last sale · ≈ $2,226/hd at 625 lb · 70 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,018 1,165 678
Feeder cattle 948 1,140 607
Slaughter cattle 57 24 71
Replacement cattle 13 1 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday the feeder market was mostly steady with a good quality, but mostly yearling offering. Feeder steers 450 lbs and under appeared sharply higher with a lite test, while the 500-650 lbs steers were steady to 4.00 higher and the yearling steers were steady with good demand. Feeder heifers 450 lbs and under appeared steady with a lite test, while the 500-700 lbs heifers were mostly steady with good demand. Yearling heifers appeared higher with a good supply and good demand for value added and guaranteed open females. Slaughter cows and bulls were 2.00 to 4.00 lower with a good supply and moderate 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
370–395 383 2 497.50–507.50 $502.66 $1,925 —
420–440 430 4 470.00–477.50 $473.66 $2,037 +18.66
480 480 2 430.00–440.00 $435.00 $2,088 +17.50
497 fancy 497 10 452.50 $452.50 $2,249 -10.18
500–530 value added 524 5 410.00–427.50 $424.16 $2,223 —
515–545 536 4 360.00–400.00 $388.49 $2,082 -27.28
550–594 value added 579 23 392.50–407.50 $400.89 $2,321 -9.44
590–594 593 6 367.50–385.00 $382.10 $2,266 -3.67
606 value added 606 3 385.00 $385.00 $2,333 -2.50
615–639 631 14 358.00–372.50 $366.98 $2,316 +12.84
661–698 686 14 340.00–367.50 $348.12 $2,388 -18.88
712–743 724 21 320.00–340.00 $332.91 $2,410 —
734 value added 734 49 351.00–359.00 $357.37 $2,623 —
750–795 763 7 320.00–335.00 $331.05 $2,526 -2.83
760–785 value added 778 26 345.00 $345.00 $2,684 -0.50
816–830 820 5 322.50–335.00 $332.47 $2,726 +1.89
865 865 1 315.00 $315.00 $2,725 +0.57
858–895 value added 876 131 320.25–330.00 $323.68 $2,835 -6.28
901–944 value added 932 210 318.00–323.00 $320.19 $2,984 -9.56
941 941 7 313.00 $313.00 $2,945 —
965–995 980 2 293.00–300.00 $296.45 $2,905 —
1003–1021 value added 1011 115 297.75–299.75 $298.66 $3,019 —
1060 1060 1 275.00 $275.00 $2,915 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
480 480 1 417.50 $417.50 $2,004 +36.21
580 580 1 340.00 $340.00 $1,972 -16.55
618 618 3 335.00 $335.00 $2,070 +18.27
710–720 715 2 302.50–315.00 $308.79 $2,208 -0.21

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380 380 4 410.00–415.00 $412.50 $1,568 -9.70
400 400 1 397.50 $397.50 $1,590 +4.01
466–470 468 10 375.00–380.00 $378.01 $1,769 —
525 525 1 317.50 $317.50 $1,667 -36.60
500–548 536 21 332.50–342.50 $337.38 $1,808 -16.72
555–587 577 6 330.00–337.50 $335.25 $1,934 -16.89
600–630 616 8 305.00–317.50 $310.99 $1,916 -9.03
620–638 value added 626 62 348.00–364.50 $362.06 $2,266 +6.18
667 667 12 337.50–360.00 $356.25 $2,376 —
655–695 669 6 300.00–320.00 $310.77 $2,079 —
705–730 712 6 295.00–322.50 $315.30 $2,245 +8.30
750–787 779 12 287.00–310.00 $295.01 $2,298 +10.01
882 882 6 285.00 $285.00 $2,514 —
906–921 value added 918 70 274.50–282.50 $280.33 $2,573 —
1040–1048 1045 5 235.00–243.00 $238.19 $2,489 —
1090 1090 1 270.00 $270.00 $2,943 —
1255 1255 1 223.00 $223.00 $2,799 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
440 440 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,540 -3.82
490 490 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,617 -10.14
617 617 2 293.00 $293.00 $1,808 +21.02
870–885 878 2 241.00–257.50 $249.32 $2,189 —
Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
785 785 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,806 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355 355 1 485.00 $485.00 $1,722 +39.93
485 485 2 427.50 $427.50 $2,073 +7.50
575 575 1 377.50 $377.50 $2,171 +19.33
600 600 1 339.00 $339.00 $2,034 +5.46
775 775 1 295.00 $295.00 $2,286 -20.00
835 835 2 280.00 $280.00 $2,338 +20.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
477 477 2 370.00 $370.00 $1,765 —
500 500 1 345.00 $345.00 $1,725 +2.50
600–640 620 4 287.50–310.00 $296.57 $1,839 +1.57
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1045 1045 (<2 yrs)N/A 1 2,850.00 $2,850.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
760–1070 915 85-90% 2 103.00–108.00 $105.08 $961 —
965 965 85-90% 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,448 —
615–1950 1176 85-90% 8 119.00–128.00 $123.74 $1,455 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1025–1425 1239 80-85% 9 129.00–145.00 $135.82 $1,683 +0.54
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1300–1955 1568 75-80% 8 132.00–139.00 $135.48 $2,124 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1020–1175 1098 2 163.00–174.00 $168.89 $1,854 —
1490 1490 1 196.00 $196.00 $2,920 —
1390–2005 1600 5 176.00–189.00 $182.06 $2,913 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
705–1180 882 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 7 145.00–217.50 $184.88 $1,631

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
970 970 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,450.00 $2,450.00
1010–1130 1070 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 3,350.00–3,400.00 $3,373.60
1055–1280 1157 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 2,850.00–3,500.00 $3,158.29

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
790–905 848 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,800.00–1,850.00 $1,823.30
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
960 960 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,700.00 $2,700.00

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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
1380 1380 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 1 3,900.00 $3,900.00 —

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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.