Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, July 17, 2024

303 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $245.00/cwt ≈ $2,127/hd at 868 lb · 60 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $273.56/cwt +11.38 vs last sale · ≈ $1,305/hd at 477 lb · 18 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $265.82/cwt +5.70 vs last sale · ≈ $1,397/hd at 526 lb · 16 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 303 600 551
Feeder cattle 260 526 426
Slaughter cattle 36 50 98
Replacement cattle 7 24 27

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week feeder steers and heifers traded mostly 2.00 to 4.00 higher with good demand; 375-425 lb calves sharply higher with very good demand; some 500-600 lbs steers lower on some average quality calves. Slaughter cows and 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 $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 value added 370 1 315.00 $315.00 $1,166 —
405–435 value added 417 3 310.00–320.00 $316.10 $1,318 -13.90
455 455 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,365 +22.93
456 value added 456 8 297.00–320.00 $311.38 $1,420 —
500–540 value added 529 12 281.00–296.00 $287.58 $1,521 -22.42
535 535 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,498 +2.47
550–585 561 4 258.00–280.00 $273.28 $1,533 —
573 value added 573 5 306.00 $306.00 $1,753 +9.27
603–610 value added 606 5 276.00–300.00 $290.33 $1,759 +5.05
625 625 1 266.00 $266.00 $1,662 +7.96
868 868 60 245.00 $245.00 $2,127 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 262.00 $262.00 $1,271 —
530 530 1 255.00 $255.00 $1,352 +27.00
600–605 602 3 225.00–247.00 $239.63 $1,443 —
675–685 683 6 231.00–240.00 $238.52 $1,629 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
267 267 2 290.00 $290.00 $774 +25.00
345 value added 345 2 316.00 $316.00 $1,090 —
365 value added 365 2 307.50 $307.50 $1,122 —
405–410 value added 408 2 300.00–306.00 $302.98 $1,236 +29.56
420 420 1 260.00 $260.00 $1,092 +10.00
420 fancy 420 2 304.00–308.00 $306.00 $1,285 -8.42
462–480 value added 465 9 270.00–282.00 $278.74 $1,296 +7.42
455–498 489 9 266.00–269.50 $268.38 $1,312 +10.11
511–528 520 6 250.00–258.00 $253.93 $1,320 -2.39
505–548 value added 529 10 264.00–279.00 $272.95 $1,444 +5.25
560–585 value added 568 5 260.00–269.00 $264.94 $1,505 +7.22
600 value added 600 2 251.00 $251.00 $1,506 +11.00
605 605 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,392 -0.20
616 fancy 616 4 271.00 $271.00 $1,669 —
660 660 4 233.00 $233.00 $1,538 +3.00
710 710 1 222.00 $222.00 $1,576 +4.75
785 785 1 224.00 $224.00 $1,758 +28.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210 210 1 270.00 $270.00 $567 —
295 295 1 275.00 $275.00 $811 +39.00
612–629 625 9 217.00–225.00 $223.26 $1,395 +3.60
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 1 230.00 $230.00 $770 —
385 385 1 230.00 $230.00 $886 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 1 300.00 $300.00 $990 +40.33
365 fancy 365 1 355.00 $355.00 $1,296 —
402–442 value added 422 4 298.00–305.00 $301.33 $1,272 —
410–440 429 4 270.00–294.00 $285.04 $1,223 +8.29
482 482 2 260.00 $260.00 $1,253 -11.85
510–521 516 7 259.00–262.00 $260.72 $1,345 -18.59
516–520 value added 517 6 270.00–285.00 $278.50 $1,440 -2.87
555–585 573 8 260.00–261.00 $260.38 $1,492 —
605–626 621 4 231.00–237.00 $232.46 $1,444 -9.65
715 715 1 234.00 $234.00 $1,673 +13.00
835 835 1 221.00 $221.00 $1,845 +11.00
1020 1020 1 202.50 $202.50 $2,066 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
225 225 1 270.00 $270.00 $608 —
540 540 1 240.00 $240.00 $1,296 -2.67
585–595 590 2 226.00–227.00 $226.50 $1,336 -13.20
710 710 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,491 —
885 885 1 194.00 $194.00 $1,717 —
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
680 680 1 216.00 $216.00 $1,469 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
750–1045 898 85-90% 2 102.00 $102.00 $916 —
995–1060 1037 85-90% 3 126.00–135.50 $130.25 $1,351 +24.15
975–1115 1066 85-90% 4 107.50–120.00 $114.47 $1,220 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1075–1420 1248 75-80% 2 119.00 $119.00 $1,485 —
1220–1330 1275 75-80% 2 127.00–129.00 $127.96 $1,631 —
1330–1675 1470 75-80% 4 132.00–137.50 $134.19 $1,973 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1115 1115 80-85% 1 120.00 $120.00 $1,338 -6.33
1230–1400 1327 80-85% 3 134.50–138.50 $136.74 $1,815 —
1200–1500 1343 80-85% 4 125.50–131.50 $128.07 $1,720 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1015–1960 1559 7 147.00–162.00 $156.30 $2,437 —
1725–2100 1853 3 173.00–197.00 $182.69 $3,385 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1115–1160 1138 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 129.50–130.00 $129.75 $1,477

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1315 1315 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 2,175.00 $2,175.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
855 855 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,275.00 $1,275.00

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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
1205 1205 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 1,550.00 $1,550.00 —

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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.