Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, January 19, 2022

469 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $145.21/cwt -2.16 vs last sale · ≈ $844/hd at 581 lb · 68 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $143.27/cwt +3.28 vs last sale · ≈ $684/hd at 477 lb · 37 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $165.08/cwt +2.44 vs last sale · ≈ $872/hd at 528 lb · 30 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 469 1,205 537
Feeder cattle 405 1,089 475
Slaughter cattle 42 92 50
Replacement cattle 22 24 12

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week feeder steers and heifers sold steady with very good demand for weaned packages. Slaughter cows and bulls sold steady 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
355 355 1 170.00 $170.00 $604 -6.00
385 value added 385 1 201.00 $201.00 $774 +5.51
411–445 value added 425 5 167.00–172.50 $169.31 $720 -1.43
455–495 value added 473 5 165.00–178.00 $170.71 $807 +4.78
500–535 value added 528 30 163.00–174.00 $165.08 $872 +2.23
561–590 value added 578 14 154.00–165.00 $158.58 $917 +2.49
600–610 value added 604 14 148.00–160.50 $155.09 $937 +6.42
625 625 1 146.00 $146.00 $912 +7.00
687–698 value added 691 13 148.00–151.00 $149.83 $1,035 +3.62
720 720 1 135.00 $135.00 $972 —
722 value added 722 4 148.50 $148.50 $1,072 -1.50
820 820 1 140.50 $140.50 $1,152 -5.25
863–899 883 22 137.25 $137.25 $1,212 -6.75
905 905 2 109.00–111.00 $110.00 $996 —
955 955 1 120.00 $120.00 $1,146 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 132.00 $132.00 $343 —
530 530 1 147.00 $147.00 $779 —
560 560 1 141.00 $141.00 $790 +5.99
995 995 1 101.00 $101.00 $1,005 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1240 1240 1 113.00 $113.00 $1,401 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270–285 275 3 127.50–142.50 $137.32 $378 -2.85
310 value added 310 7 140.00 $140.00 $434 —
417–440 value added 432 8 141.00–144.00 $143.39 $619 -6.83
435 435 1 131.00 $131.00 $570 -4.88
450–490 value added 477 29 139.00–148.50 $145.93 $696 +2.73
477–495 479 8 133.00–138.00 $133.65 $640 +2.21
522 522 2 135.00 $135.00 $705 -0.98
535–544 value added 541 17 141.50–144.50 $143.45 $776 +2.28
575–595 value added 581 68 139.00–146.75 $145.21 $844 -2.82
600–637 value added 624 14 131.00–143.00 $138.31 $863 -0.58
710 710 4 119.00 $119.00 $845 +0.58
776 value added 776 3 124.00 $124.00 $962 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
235 235 1 115.00 $115.00 $270 —
290 290 1 125.00 $125.00 $362 -6.00
370–385 378 3 102.50–125.00 $115.77 $438 -10.38
400 400 8 115.00 $115.00 $460 —
465–492 483 3 119.00–124.00 $120.60 $582 +0.60
530 530 1 129.00 $129.00 $684 +5.47
570 570 1 115.00 $115.00 $656 -12.20
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–395 382 3 125.00 $125.00 $478 —
405 405 2 112.50 $112.50 $456 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
500 500 1 105.00 $105.00 $525 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 value added 370 1 171.00 $171.00 $633 —
400 400 5 156.00 $156.00 $624 +5.75
405–447 value added 433 3 172.50–179.00 $176.97 $766 —
480–485 value added 483 2 159.00–160.00 $159.50 $770 -3.50
485 485 1 144.00 $144.00 $698 -6.40
507 value added 507 4 154.00 $154.00 $781 -4.97
585 585 1 146.00 $146.00 $854 -1.65
645 645 1 129.00 $129.00 $832 +3.51
645 value added 645 1 130.00 $130.00 $838 —
665–695 value added 682 6 132.00–139.00 $135.79 $926 +0.79
735 value added 735 2 127.00 $127.00 $933 —
770–787 781 3 117.00–119.00 $118.34 $924 -3.31
825 825 1 102.00 $102.00 $842 -10.00
860 860 1 107.00 $107.00 $920 +7.07
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 2 140.00 $140.00 $336 -2.50
280 280 2 132.50–142.50 $137.50 $385 —
312–332 322 4 132.50–140.00 $136.13 $438 -6.37
488 488 11 140.00 $140.00 $683 +6.92
557 557 4 139.00 $139.00 $774 +11.99
640 640 1 116.00 $116.00 $742 -4.00
945 945 1 82.00 $82.00 $775 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
617 617 4 128.00 $128.00 $790 —
825 825 1 91.00 $91.00 $751 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400–425 413 2 105.00–127.50 $115.91 $479 —
477–490 481 3 110.00–121.00 $117.27 $564 -10.23

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
795–1185 958 85-90% 3 57.00–59.00 $58.10 $557 +8.32
735–1310 1003 85-90% 8 39.00–45.00 $41.94 $421 —
870–1170 1018 85-90% 3 52.00–57.00 $54.80 $558 —
925–1175 1050 85-90% 2 49.00–50.00 $49.56 $520 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250–1325 1283 80-85% 3 64.00–68.00 $65.65 $842 —
1120–1480 1329 80-85% 9 69.00–75.00 $71.32 $948 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1220–1345 1282 75-80% 3 66.00–68.00 $66.97 $859 —
1485 1485 75-80% 1 62.00 $62.00 $921 —
1410–1945 1673 75-80% 5 71.00–74.00 $72.77 $1,217 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185 1185 1 85.00 $85.00 $1,007 —
1405–1830 1618 2 91.00–93.00 $91.87 $1,486 +0.37
1850–1880 1865 2 107.00–109.00 $108.01 $2,014 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
945 945 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 725.00 $725.00
870–1306 1146 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 7 625.00–760.00 $731.39
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
810 810 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 800.00 $800.00
1045–1175 1112 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 850.00–1,100.00 $985.08
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
810 810 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 800.00 $800.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
965 965 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 900.00 $900.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
705–725 715 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 700.00–750.00 $725.35 —

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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.