Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, September 27, 2023

1,301 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $229.72/cwt +38.19 vs last sale · ≈ $1,636/hd at 712 lb · 77 head

light 8-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $222.29/cwt ≈ $1,839/hd at 827 lb · 68 head

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $232.05/cwt -5.38 vs last sale · ≈ $1,229/hd at 530 lb · 53 head

Receipts

Head	This sale	Last sale	Last year
Total receipts	1,301	1,242	1,082
Feeder cattle	1,078	1,052	907
Slaughter cattle	172	135	155
Replacement cattle	51	55	20

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday feeder steers under 600 lbs sold 3.00 to 6.00 lower with light demand for fleshy, off-color and bawling calves. Feeder heifers under 600 lbs sold 5.00 to 8.00 lower with light demand for fleshy, off-color and bawling calves. Plain quality and single odds and ends facing deep discounts. Yearling steers light test. Yearling heifers sold steady with good demand. Slaughter cows sold 10.00 lower with light demand under heavy supply. Slaughter 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 $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
366 fancy	366	5	267.50	$267.50	$979	—
380	380	1	250.00	$250.00	$950	±0.00
402–438 value added	421	25	261.00–280.00	$268.95	$1,132	+7.95
456–495	475	22	242.50–255.00	$244.34	$1,161	-10.43
500–538 value added	528	10	250.00–262.00	$257.92	$1,362	-2.83
510–545	538	5	243.00–249.00	$247.46	$1,331	-4.89
560–570	565	22	240.00–246.00	$242.09	$1,368	-6.89
565–582 value added	578	13	251.00–254.00	$253.77	$1,467	-9.64
600–627 value added	613	21	251.00–264.50	$255.65	$1,567	+1.91
610–640	632	17	231.00–236.00	$232.32	$1,468	-5.06
710	710	1	223.00	$223.00	$1,583	—
720 value added	720	10	233.50	$233.50	$1,681	—
755	755	1	220.00	$220.00	$1,661	-15.51
920–930	925	4	205.00–226.00	$215.56	$1,994	+9.55

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
375	375	1	227.50	$227.50	$853	+18.58
425–447	443	12	221.00–241.00	$232.93	$1,032	—
460	460	1	240.00	$240.00	$1,104	+9.67
510–545	530	7	229.00–237.50	$235.09	$1,246	—
555	555	1	227.00	$227.00	$1,260	-7.03
610	610	2	206.00	$206.00	$1,257	-12.51
655–660	658	3	206.00–222.00	$211.31	$1,390	-1.59
725	725	2	210.00	$210.00	$1,522	-0.77

Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
525	525	3	240.00–251.00	$247.33	$1,298	+8.94
553–555	554	4	226.00–232.00	$230.50	$1,277	-7.30
635	635	2	201.00	$201.00	$1,276	-31.46
783–795	784	9	190.00–210.00	$192.25	$1,507	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
435	435	2	190.00	$190.00	$826	-20.00
590	590	1	162.00	$162.00	$956	—
620	620	1	171.00	$171.00	$1,060	—

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
270–283	280	5	204.00–220.00	$216.92	$607	—
327 value added	327	4	219.00	$219.00	$716	-17.00
310–349	344	10	200.00–202.50	$201.97	$695	-15.90
380–385	383	3	195.00–205.50	$198.47	$760	-31.77
385 value added	385	2	219.00–230.00	$224.50	$864	-27.04
410–439 value added	431	13	224.00–231.00	$226.70	$977	-13.16
435–447	441	5	218.00–223.00	$220.42	$972	-8.35
453–493	469	39	210.00–223.50	$220.91	$1,036	-6.34
475–495 value added	481	7	224.00–236.00	$230.21	$1,107	-8.69
502–547	524	15	210.00–222.00	$217.01	$1,137	-4.86
503–548 value added	532	38	226.00–245.00	$237.98	$1,266	-3.46
568–575	571	5	220.00	$220.00	$1,256	-0.65
560–592 value added	573	29	224.00–239.00	$233.15	$1,336	-17.77
611–646 value added	626	12	220.00–223.00	$221.71	$1,388	-24.43
605–648	637	6	207.00–216.00	$210.51	$1,341	-6.80
656–673	662	17	202.00–214.00	$206.16	$1,365	—
712 value added	712	65	237.25	$237.25	$1,689	—
712–725	713	12	183.00–190.00	$188.91	$1,347	-2.62
755–780	761	11	179.00–188.00	$185.17	$1,409	-11.34
802	802	2	174.00	$174.00	$1,395	—
828 fancy	828	66	223.75	$223.75	$1,853	—
862–895	871	11	150.00–170.00	$164.40	$1,432	-10.74
956	956	3	158.00	$158.00	$1,510	—
1235	1235	1	129.00	$129.00	$1,593	—

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
280–285	283	2	170.00–198.00	$184.12	$521	-1.54
325–345	340	7	163.00–187.50	$176.24	$599	-23.02
360–380	372	12	170.00–191.00	$184.08	$685	-10.42
405–442	429	13	180.00–210.00	$189.86	$814	-11.64
458–485	467	6	171.00–210.00	$185.47	$866	—
525	525	1	192.50	$192.50	$1,011	-22.03
550–583	573	21	192.00–206.00	$201.37	$1,154	+3.52
621–640	626	4	163.00–173.00	$170.44	$1,067	-24.52
650	650	1	174.00	$174.00	$1,131	-10.72
700–735	716	5	149.00–162.50	$153.66	$1,100	-7.34
775–780	778	2	140.00–143.00	$141.50	$1,101	-8.50
950	950	2	136.00	$136.00	$1,292	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
325–347	340	3	127.50–158.00	$137.23	$467	—
355–361	360	4	130.00–131.00	$130.25	$469	—
415–430	423	3	142.00–170.00	$152.15	$644	—
468–475	470	7	135.00–162.50	$147.44	$693	—
500	500	2	170.00	$170.00	$850	—
558–585	565	5	150.00–164.00	$152.80	$863	—

Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
352–386	361	11	170.00–190.00	$184.17	$665	—
435	435	2	204.00	$204.00	$887	—
472–487	480	4	190.00–210.00	$199.84	$959	—
675	675	1	182.00	$182.00	$1,228	—
750	750	1	165.00	$165.00	$1,238	—

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
375–377	376	3	240.00–255.00	$250.02	$940	+0.46
395 value added	395	1	280.00	$280.00	$1,106	—
400–440	418	9	232.50–248.00	$242.18	$1,012	+2.07
460–470	463	3	222.00–230.00	$227.29	$1,052	-7.67
507–536	515	16	226.00–237.00	$234.72	$1,209	+2.57
556–575	561	7	212.50–223.00	$215.57	$1,209	—
600–632	619	13	190.00–210.00	$195.02	$1,207	-6.78
650–688	676	14	186.00–198.00	$193.52	$1,308	-3.68
700–725	709	8	177.00–191.00	$187.87	$1,332	-1.09
800	800	1	160.00	$160.00	$1,280	—
850–875	863	2	160.00–188.00	$173.80	$1,500	-14.20

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
281–295	285	4	190.00–215.00	$208.52	$594	-0.63
315–345	332	3	161.00–230.00	$201.42	$669	-24.07
355–390	379	7	200.00–234.00	$224.29	$850	+2.13
400–440	421	8	200.00–216.00	$210.80	$887	-12.32
457–485	474	11	198.00–220.00	$210.82	$999	-12.35
500–540	518	14	200.00–219.00	$206.49	$1,070	-1.13
550–585	568	10	181.00–202.00	$191.99	$1,091	-16.89
605–645	628	3	183.00–187.00	$185.63	$1,166	-3.01
650	650	1	180.00	$180.00	$1,170	-3.98
725	725	1	147.00	$147.00	$1,066	-17.00
780–785	783	2	168.00–171.00	$169.50	$1,327	+7.50
855	855	1	142.00	$142.00	$1,214	-25.50
925	925	2	130.00–133.00	$131.50	$1,216	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
265	265	1	182.50	$182.50	$484	—
315–345	330	3	152.50–180.00	$169.14	$558	—
365–395	375	3	140.00–161.00	$147.37	$553	—
430–435	433	3	180.00–186.00	$184.02	$797	-7.57
495	495	1	157.50	$157.50	$780	—
510–535	527	3	145.00–162.50	$156.85	$827	—
557–575	566	4	164.00–181.00	$168.57	$954	—

Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
572	572	2	200.00	$200.00	$1,144	—
605–645	618	3	190.00–192.00	$190.70	$1,179	-6.30
662–680	668	3	186.00–191.00	$189.30	$1,265	+9.30

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1195–1315	1255	75-80%	2	84.50	$84.50	$1,060	-7.24
1185–2020	1415	75-80%	22	85.00–94.00	$89.76	$1,270	-12.92
1165–1755	1494	75-80%	25	94.50–106.50	$99.59	$1,488	—

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
795–1215	982	85-90%	8	48.00–73.00	$66.04	$649	—
930–1415	1108	85-90%	22	73.50–81.00	$77.02	$853	—
880–1250	1118	85-90%	7	86.50–99.00	$90.01	$1,006	—
930–1355	1125	85-90%	7	81.00–86.00	$83.31	$937	—

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1085–1355	1190	80-85%	3	96.50–99.50	$98.59	$1,173	—
1070–1470	1270	80-85%	2	76.00–80.00	$77.69	$987	-16.23
1055–1475	1294	80-85%	14	85.00–94.00	$87.90	$1,137	-6.02

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1250–1870	1582	8	102.00–109.50	$105.43	$1,668	—
1415–1915	1626	7	114.00–127.50	$122.74	$1,996	—
1550–1890	1717	6	131.50–142.50	$135.97	$2,335	—

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd
845–1050	958	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	5	96.00–125.00	$108.91	$1,043
1040	1040	Young (2-4 yrs)	Open	1	118.00	$118.00	$1,227

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd
975	975	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	1	93.00	$93.00	$907

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
810–1140	1018	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	5	625.00–1,050.00	$848.50
875–1155	1028	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	3	850.00–1,025.00	$936.79
1045	1045	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	1	1,000.00	$1,000.00

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
1010	1010	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	1	1,050.00	$1,050.00
1030–1070	1052	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	3	1,125.00–1,375.00	$1,259.94
1115–1240	1178	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	2	1,075.00–1,525.00	$1,288.06

Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
750–780	765	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	2	675.00	$675.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
840–900	870	Young (2-4 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	2	1,010.00	$1,010.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
945–1380	1227	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	3	1,475.00–1,725.00	$1,585.80	—

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
910	910	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	1	1,275.00	$1,275.00	—
1450	1450	Aged (>8 yrs)	Open	1	1,300.00	$1,300.00	—

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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.