Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, June 2, 2021

428 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Bluegrass Stockyard report →

heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $130.00/cwt ≈ $1,126/hd at 866 lb · 60 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $144.32/cwt +5.75 vs last sale · ≈ $692/hd at 480 lb · 18 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $157.20/cwt ≈ $823/hd at 524 lb · 14 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 428 353 495
Feeder cattle 340 244 452
Slaughter cattle 71 64 22
Replacement cattle 17 45 21

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday feeder steers and heifers sold steady to 3.00 higher with good demand. Slaughter cows sold 5.00 to 7.00 lower with moderate demand. Slaughter bulls sold 3.00 lower with good 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
330–345 338 2 151.00–162.00 $156.38 $529 -6.12
360 360 1 157.00 $157.00 $565 —
385–390 value added 388 4 165.00–166.00 $165.50 $642 +0.50
415–445 value added 432 3 157.50–171.00 $165.24 $714 +8.24
462–480 value added 466 6 157.50–165.00 $163.21 $761 +5.78
505–530 518 3 151.00–155.00 $152.63 $791 —
505–537 value added 525 11 156.00–161.00 $158.45 $832 —
565–580 value added 572 6 153.00–154.00 $153.50 $878 -0.50
606–643 value added 620 10 141.00–153.25 $149.27 $925 +5.79
670 value added 670 1 141.00 $141.00 $945 +1.52
715 value added 715 4 140.00 $140.00 $1,001 +3.16
793 value added 793 7 132.75 $132.75 $1,053 —
818–820 819 4 124.00–127.50 $126.62 $1,037 —
866 866 60 130.00 $130.00 $1,126 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 137.00 $137.00 $664 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 1 120.00 $120.00 $390 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320 320 1 145.00 $145.00 $464 —
350–385 365 7 140.00–145.00 $142.65 $521 +5.88
355–390 value added 377 3 143.00–145.00 $143.97 $543 —
433–440 value added 436 8 140.00–145.00 $142.94 $623 -1.06
445 445 1 132.00 $132.00 $587 -3.35
455–490 477 3 134.00–137.50 $136.13 $649 -1.38
460–497 value added 480 15 141.00–149.50 $145.96 $701 +6.32
505 505 1 134.00 $134.00 $677 +6.20
507–545 value added 528 11 136.00–148.00 $142.11 $750 -0.25
555–595 value added 565 6 139.00–140.00 $139.83 $790 +4.83
555–595 574 7 125.00–131.00 $127.43 $731 -5.57
605–648 value added 639 13 129.00–137.00 $133.10 $851 -2.40
672 value added 672 2 131.00 $131.00 $880 -1.00
685–691 690 4 116.00–120.00 $116.99 $807 —
690 690 1 121.00 $121.00 $835 —
715 value added 715 2 121.00 $121.00 $865 —
715–720 718 2 106.00–107.00 $106.50 $765 -8.16
755 755 1 103.00 $103.00 $778 -13.00
793 793 5 115.00 $115.00 $912 -1.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
265 265 1 132.50 $132.50 $351 +7.50
365 365 1 129.00 $129.00 $471 +4.37
430 430 1 129.00 $129.00 $555 +6.00
510–540 527 3 120.00–122.00 $121.01 $638 +0.01
647 647 11 114.50 $114.50 $741 +0.51
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400 400 1 127.00 $127.00 $508 —
455 455 1 121.00 $121.00 $551 —
572 572 5 134.00 $134.00 $766 —
605 605 1 115.00 $115.00 $696 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 410 1 147.50 $147.50 $605 —
482 value added 482 2 160.00 $160.00 $771 —
500 value added 500 1 153.00 $153.00 $765 —
546 546 3 146.00 $146.00 $797 +4.69
560–590 573 3 139.00–149.00 $144.59 $829 +9.59
585 value added 585 1 149.00 $149.00 $872 —
600 600 1 127.00 $127.00 $762 —
600–645 value added 618 3 130.00–136.00 $133.68 $826 -0.32
665–697 value added 689 8 134.00–135.00 $134.76 $928 +1.76
715–735 725 2 118.00–119.00 $118.49 $859 —
780 780 1 116.00 $116.00 $905 +4.51
820 820 1 106.00 $106.00 $869 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
425 425 1 132.00 $132.00 $561 —
500 500 1 134.00 $134.00 $670 ±0.00
575–580 578 3 133.00–135.00 $134.34 $776 —
625 625 1 112.00 $112.00 $700 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
630 value added 630 1 141.00 $141.00 $888 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1315 1315 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 1 1,350.00 $1,350.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1090–1605 1284 80-85% 15 67.00–74.00 $69.91 $898 +4.91
1155–1380 1287 80-85% 5 62.00–66.00 $64.14 $825 -0.86
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
725–1160 893 85-90% 3 49.00–54.00 $51.78 $462 -5.50
995–1080 1038 85-90% 2 57.00–63.00 $59.88 $622 -6.53
980–1165 1074 85-90% 7 65.50–68.00 $66.84 $718 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1350–1620 1522 75-80% 7 67.50–73.00 $70.98 $1,080 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1155 1155 1 77.00 $77.00 $889 —
1290–1880 1662 3 88.00–93.00 $90.40 $1,502 —
1455–2175 1717 5 95.00–104.00 $100.46 $1,725 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1405–1455 1430 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,000.00–1,025.00 $1,012.72
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
995 995 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 700.00 $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
1375 1375 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,100.00 $1,100.00 —
1410–1475 fancy 1443 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,600.00–1,650.00 $1,625.56 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1050–1260 1155 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 825.00–1,075.00 $938.64 —

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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.