Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, April 16, 2025

585 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $347.10/cwt +34.24 vs last sale · ≈ $1,657/hd at 477 lb · 38 head

light 8-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $266.25/cwt ≈ $2,221/hd at 834 lb · 32 head

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $319.40/cwt +15.01 vs last sale · ≈ $1,799/hd at 563 lb · 31 head

Receipts

Head	This sale	Last sale	Last year
Total receipts	585	364	634
Feeder cattle	478	316	478
Slaughter cattle	79	30	117
Replacement cattle	28	18	39

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday feeder steers and heifers under 600 lbs sold sharply higher on weaned packages in a limited comparison. Yearlings good demand in a lite test. Slaughter cows and slaughter bulls sold 5.00 to 8.00 higher with very 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
255–290 fancy	268	3	400.00–447.00	$423.10	$1,134	—
290	290	1	342.50	$342.50	$993	—
305 fancy	305	1	400.00	$400.00	$1,220	—
320–345 value added	333	2	412.00–425.00	$418.74	$1,394	—
350–375 value added	359	4	400.00–437.00	$414.69	$1,489	-10.31
360 fancy	360	1	430.00	$430.00	$1,548	—
360–385	373	2	380.00–397.00	$388.79	$1,450	+0.44
400–440 value added	414	13	395.00–420.00	$408.74	$1,692	+33.64
405–445	422	5	375.00–394.00	$385.28	$1,626	+26.98
455–472	466	3	335.00–367.50	$356.93	$1,663	+11.93
460–499 value added	492	17	390.00–412.00	$400.80	$1,972	+15.80
505	505	1	340.00	$340.00	$1,717	+40.00
508–535 value added	517	11	350.00–395.00	$380.67	$1,968	+15.40
555–595 value added	578	28	342.50–375.00	$355.09	$2,052	+12.18
565–590	578	2	325.00–335.00	$330.11	$1,908	—
600–647 value added	628	21	317.00–337.50	$326.69	$2,052	-0.31
605–639	633	6	290.00–305.00	$302.61	$1,916	+19.61
657 fancy	657	2	300.00	$300.00	$1,971	—
676–680 value added	677	4	290.00–325.00	$316.21	$2,141	—
655–690	681	4	275.00–285.00	$282.60	$1,925	-5.73
701–736 value added	719	7	280.00–300.00	$286.83	$2,062	—
743	743	4	250.00	$250.00	$1,858	—
835	835	2	246.00	$246.00	$2,054	-23.57
900	900	3	248.00	$248.00	$2,232	—

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
285	285	1	282.50	$282.50	$805	—
317–330	321	3	332.50–360.00	$350.59	$1,125	+0.59
380	380	2	325.00	$325.00	$1,235	-27.89
425–435	428	4	300.00–335.00	$315.12	$1,349	—
530–545	538	2	300.00–312.00	$306.08	$1,647	—
612	612	2	265.00	$265.00	$1,622	+15.00
650–690	663	3	250.00–251.00	$250.65	$1,662	—
775	775	1	226.00	$226.00	$1,752	—
815	815	1	220.00	$220.00	$1,793	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
225–240	233	2	252.50–265.00	$258.95	$603	—
400	400	1	265.00	$265.00	$1,060	—
465	465	1	255.00	$255.00	$1,186	-5.00
520	520	1	242.50	$242.50	$1,261	—
640	640	1	220.00	$220.00	$1,408	—

Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
672	672	2	250.00	$250.00	$1,680	-14.00
935	935	1	180.00	$180.00	$1,683	—

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
260–285	272	3	367.50–392.50	$381.27	$1,037	+30.77
325–330	327	3	347.50–355.00	$352.47	$1,153	+20.29
315–347 value added	336	3	382.50–425.00	$395.77	$1,330	—
355–395 value added	372	13	370.00–400.00	$393.23	$1,463	—
360–395	378	6	325.00–367.00	$347.50	$1,314	+29.50
410	410	1	321.00	$321.00	$1,316	+10.61
400–445 value added	424	15	352.50–390.00	$372.74	$1,580	+48.27
455–488	475	7	324.00–330.00	$326.57	$1,551	+20.27
456–496 value added	478	31	340.00–375.00	$351.74	$1,681	+36.69
505–515 value added	507	5	322.00–370.00	$346.46	$1,757	+28.80
530–532	531	3	302.50	$302.50	$1,606	+4.59
552–588	562	13	300.00–316.00	$307.50	$1,728	—
550–595 value added	564	18	323.00–330.00	$327.99	$1,850	+23.60
607–620 value added	612	6	280.00–315.00	$298.87	$1,829	+4.87
610–640	625	2	270.00–274.00	$271.95	$1,700	-6.90
740	740	1	244.00	$244.00	$1,806	-16.00
834	834	32	266.25	$266.25	$2,221	—
990	990	1	195.00	$195.00	$1,930	—

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
245	245	1	307.00	$307.00	$752	—
275	275	1	282.50	$282.50	$777	-29.50
305	305	1	300.00	$300.00	$915	—
360	360	1	335.00	$335.00	$1,206	+47.50
425–427	426	3	301.00–312.50	$308.68	$1,315	+26.21
450–495	479	7	272.00–305.00	$293.60	$1,406	+29.80
500–540	520	2	285.00	$285.00	$1,482	+12.10
570	570	1	193.00	$193.00	$1,100	—
625	625	1	247.00	$247.00	$1,544	+8.17
755–795	775	2	202.50–222.00	$212.00	$1,643	—
805–825	815	2	162.50–175.00	$168.67	$1,375	—

Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
495	495	1	307.00	$307.00	$1,520	—
540	540	1	290.00	$290.00	$1,566	—
565–590	578	2	257.50–272.50	$264.84	$1,531	—
855	855	1	215.00	$215.00	$1,838	—

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
350	350	1	240.00	$240.00	$840	—
440	440	1	235.00	$235.00	$1,034	—

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1265	1265	1	187.00	$187.00	$2,366	—

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
200–210	205	2	330.00–375.00	$353.05	$724	—
275 fancy	275	1	407.00	$407.00	$1,119	—
320–335 fancy	328	2	420.00–430.00	$425.11	$1,394	—
370	370	1	410.00	$410.00	$1,517	+31.25
415–425 fancy	418	3	400.00–407.00	$404.63	$1,691	—
415–430 value added	422	4	412.00–427.00	$415.82	$1,755	+40.82
415–445	437	7	344.00–390.00	$383.03	$1,674	+33.34
465–495	481	7	342.00–360.00	$348.77	$1,678	-3.97
515–537	528	7	310.00–344.00	$316.83	$1,673	-8.17
585–597	594	4	320.00–340.00	$327.44	$1,945	—
610–620 value added	615	2	302.50–312.00	$307.21	$1,889	—
688 value added	688	4	285.00	$285.00	$1,961	—
786	786	3	245.00	$245.00	$1,926	-6.76
835	835	1	210.00	$210.00	$1,754	+15.00
850	850	1	227.00	$227.00	$1,930	—
925	925	1	185.00	$185.00	$1,711	—
985	985	1	214.00	$214.00	$2,108	—
1130–1135	1133	2	177.50–198.00	$187.77	$2,127	—

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
215	215	1	325.00	$325.00	$699	—
345	345	1	290.00	$290.00	$1,000	-21.00
365–390	378	2	280.00–350.00	$313.84	$1,186	-16.16
405–440	425	3	262.50–277.00	$267.97	$1,139	-32.03
485	485	1	285.00	$285.00	$1,382	—
505–545	525	2	272.50–300.00	$285.73	$1,500	—
550–590	570	2	270.00	$270.00	$1,539	+11.44
630–635	633	2	242.50–272.00	$257.19	$1,628	—
670	670	1	255.00	$255.00	$1,708	—

Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
460	460	1	325.00	$325.00	$1,495	-12.50

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
255	255	1	250.00	$250.00	$638	—

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
900–1260	1084	85-90%	19	135.50–158.00	$147.02	$1,594	—
975–1240	1090	85-90%	4	115.00–127.00	$122.11	$1,331	—
1005–1265	1122	85-90%	3	107.00–114.00	$111.16	$1,247	—

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1070–1365	1187	80-85%	7	143.00–149.00	$147.31	$1,749	—
1100–1430	1243	80-85%	3	132.50–139.00	$136.19	$1,693	+9.70
1065–1575	1256	80-85%	14	151.00–160.00	$155.85	$1,957	+15.85

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1310–1445	1378	75-80%	2	132.00–134.50	$133.31	$1,837	—
1230–1835	1428	75-80%	6	144.00–149.00	$147.44	$2,105	+4.58
1285–1655	1456	75-80%	13	149.00–159.50	$153.68	$2,238	—

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1395	1395	1	153.00	$153.00	$2,134	—
1505–1515	1510	2	171.00–177.00	$173.99	$2,627	—
1450–2100	1877	9	179.00–200.00	$188.62	$3,540	—

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd
815–1105	994	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	4	162.00–178.00	$168.82	$1,678

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd
765–1430	1026	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	4	133.00–149.00	$140.00	$1,436

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
1090	1090	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	1	2,350.00	$2,350.00
1125–1355	1292	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	5	2,100.00–2,625.00	$2,491.60

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Age	Stage	Head	Price range	Avg $
1095	1095	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	1	1,700.00	$1,700.00

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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
1480	1480	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	1	2,700.00	$2,700.00	—

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Dairy Cows

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1260	1260	85-90%	1	110.00	$110.00	$1,386	—

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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.