Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 21, 2022

206 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 206 1,186 209
Feeder cattle 85 1,051 156
Slaughter cattle 53 108 42
Replacement cattle 68 27 11

Market comments — USDA reporter

Market not fully established due to light run ahead of approaching winter storm.

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
390 390 1 177.50 $177.50 $692 -5.37
488 value added 488 4 175.00 $175.00 $854 -4.64
525 525 1 167.00 $167.00 $877 +7.68
685 value added 685 1 155.00 $155.00 $1,062 -5.40
735 735 1 144.00 $144.00 $1,058 —
865 865 2 141.00 $141.00 $1,220 -13.86
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
500 500 1 130.00 $130.00 $650 -21.00
570 570 1 140.00 $140.00 $798 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350–395 value added 377 3 150.00–155.00 $152.60 $575 -4.11
410–435 424 6 132.00–145.00 $139.79 $593 -6.21
485 485 1 145.00 $145.00 $703 +1.09
500–545 517 6 130.00–140.00 $133.18 $689 -9.89
520 value added 520 1 147.00 $147.00 $764 -5.15
560 value added 560 1 147.00 $147.00 $823 +0.16
582 582 4 130.00 $130.00 $757 -12.01
650 650 4 135.00 $135.00 $878 +8.68
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280 280 1 125.00 $125.00 $350 ±0.00
305 305 1 130.00 $130.00 $396 +1.69
350–370 360 2 125.00–132.00 $128.60 $463 +6.60
430–445 438 2 130.00–133.00 $131.53 $576 -4.47
470 470 1 137.00 $137.00 $644 +4.67
535–540 538 2 127.00–132.00 $129.49 $697 +2.17
655 655 2 115.00 $115.00 $753 +5.00
785 785 2 102.00 $102.00 $801 -10.99
850 850 1 101.00 $101.00 $858 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405–437 value added 421 4 172.50–182.50 $177.31 $746 +7.81
477 value added 477 2 166.00 $166.00 $792 -1.00
500 500 1 141.00 $141.00 $705 -2.50
605 value added 605 1 144.00 $144.00 $871 +3.16
635 635 1 135.00 $135.00 $857 +0.01
650–676 value added 666 5 146.00 $146.00 $972 +5.00
895 895 1 111.00 $111.00 $993 -9.61
915 915 1 103.00 $103.00 $942 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
505 505 1 131.00 $131.00 $662 -9.33
555 555 1 124.00 $124.00 $688 -17.35
680 680 1 126.00 $126.00 $857 +1.00
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
655 655 1 102.00 $102.00 $668 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1240 1228 80-85% 2 60.00–61.00 $60.51 $743 —
1000–1495 1259 80-85% 13 66.00–74.00 $69.53 $875 +3.55
1255–1350 1292 80-85% 3 79.00–81.00 $80.35 $1,038 +14.37
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
845–1195 1044 85-90% 7 53.00–58.00 $56.01 $585 +9.21
960–1245 1058 85-90% 6 65.00–68.00 $66.42 $703 +10.05
1210–1275 1243 85-90% 2 75.00–77.00 $76.03 $945 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1170–1600 1388 75-80% 7 66.00–72.50 $69.52 $965 —
1220–1765 1472 75-80% 7 74.50–78.00 $76.31 $1,123 +5.75

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1155–1270 1225 3 79.00–87.00 $82.55 $1,011 —
1895 1895 1 105.00 $105.00 $1,990 —
1795–2115 1955 2 107.00–109.00 $108.08 $2,113 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
972 972 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 1,000.00 $1,000.00
945–1477 1139 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 17 1,025.00–1,450.00 $1,190.06
1080–1410 1158 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 15 1,025.00–1,360.00 $1,256.05
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
805–1155 1003 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 6 685.00–925.00 $778.00
1060–1420 1179 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 4 800.00–925.00 $877.04
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
895 895 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 650.00 $650.00
925 925 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 625.00 $625.00

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Bred Heifers

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 1,000.00 $1,000.00
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
780 780 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 525.00 $525.00

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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
1127–1185 1156 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 1,375.00–1,700.00 $1,541.58 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1075 1075 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 1,250.00 $1,250.00 —
1260 1260 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,100.00 $1,100.00 —

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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.