Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report, Mt. Sterling, KY

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, April 3, 2024

306 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $250.50/cwt +3.50 vs last sale · ≈ $1,929/hd at 770 lb · 63 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $255.70/cwt -13.72 vs last sale · ≈ $1,219/hd at 477 lb · 11 head
HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 306 458 738
Feeder cattle 254 376 653
Slaughter cattle 45 54 67
Replacement cattle 7 28 18

Compared to last Wednesday feeder steers and heifers sold steady on similar quality in a lite test. Slaughter cows sold steady with very good demand. Slaughter bulls sold 5.00 higher with very good demand.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380 380 1 324.00 $324.00 $1,231 +15.00
420 420 1 327.50 $327.50 $1,376 —
450–480 465 2 285.00–297.00 $290.81 $1,352 —
515–542 531 4 264.00–276.00 $267.21 $1,419 +8.21
635 635 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,588 —
770 value added 770 63 250.50 $250.50 $1,929 +3.50
805 805 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,771 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 286.00 $286.00 $1,115 -0.67
410 410 1 265.00 $265.00 $1,086 —
600 600 1 232.00 $232.00 $1,392 —
905–935 920 2 180.00–186.00 $182.95 $1,683 —
980 980 1 130.00 $130.00 $1,274 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1140 1140 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,710 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 375 1 255.00 $255.00 $956 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 340 1 291.00 $291.00 $989 +8.61
371–380 373 5 265.00–278.00 $275.35 $1,027 -12.15
465–480 473 6 248.00–250.00 $249.67 $1,181 -2.33
465–488 value added 481 5 260.00–270.00 $262.94 $1,265 -7.45
507–532 value added 521 7 256.00–269.00 $261.33 $1,362 -6.68
600 600 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,380 —
735 735 1 202.00 $202.00 $1,485 +2.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335–345 342 3 261.00–269.00 $266.39 $911 —
360–395 373 3 250.00–253.00 $251.06 $936 +6.61
400–405 403 2 230.00–245.00 $237.45 $957 —
560–590 580 3 226.00–230.00 $227.29 $1,318 +2.29
625–645 635 2 224.00–226.00 $225.02 $1,429 —
660–685 673 2 151.00–172.00 $161.70 $1,088 -26.04
800 800 1 129.00 $129.00 $1,032 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
512 512 2 244.00 $244.00 $1,249 —
590 590 1 193.00 $193.00 $1,139 —
700 700 2 186.00 $186.00 $1,302 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
235 235 1 240.00 $240.00 $564 —
290 290 1 204.00 $204.00 $592 —
365 365 1 217.00 $217.00 $792 +7.00

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 1 306.00 $306.00 $842 +30.00
347 347 2 285.00 $285.00 $989 —
547 547 2 252.00 $252.00 $1,378 -6.00
570 570 2 260.00 $260.00 $1,482 -17.00
605 605 2 229.00–236.00 $232.50 $1,407 —
607 value added 607 2 241.00 $241.00 $1,463 -28.84
775 775 1 217.00 $217.00 $1,682 —
810 810 1 181.00 $181.00 $1,466 -31.55
1005 1005 1 161.00 $161.00 $1,618 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 1 245.00 $245.00 $821 +11.00
355 355 1 255.00 $255.00 $905 +30.00
460–470 463 3 240.00–249.00 $243.04 $1,125 +9.04
555 555 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,304 —
745 745 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,490 —
757–780 765 3 200.00–206.00 $202.04 $1,546 —
810 810 1 160.00 $160.00 $1,296 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
460 460 1 219.00 $219.00 $1,007 —
510 510 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,122 -5.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1040 1040 (<2 yrs)N/A 1 2,025.00 $2,025.00 —

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Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
760–900 830 85-90% 2 76.00–86.00 $81.42 $676 —
870–895 883 85-90% 2 94.00–96.00 $94.99 $839 —
820–1220 1016 85-90% 4 102.00–110.00 $106.61 $1,083 -2.34
785–1250 1029 85-90% 6 113.00–128.00 $118.97 $1,224 +10.02
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1260 1260 75-80% 1 109.00 $109.00 $1,373 —
1120–1630 1439 75-80% 7 115.00–121.00 $117.63 $1,693 -12.48
1160–1855 1563 75-80% 4 122.50–127.50 $125.09 $1,955 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1005 1005 80-85% 1 111.00 $111.00 $1,116 —
1115–1435 1316 80-85% 7 122.00–135.00 $128.63 $1,693 —

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YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1160–1325 1243 2 128.00–133.00 $130.33 $1,620 —
1785–2205 2016 6 157.00–178.00 $169.97 $3,427 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1175 1175 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,900.00 $1,900.00 —
1595 1595 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 2,550.00 $2,550.00 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
800 800 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,085.00 $1,085.00 —

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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.