Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, August 20, 2025

196 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 9-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $282.00/cwt ≈ $2,814/hd at 998 lb · 37 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $338.50/cwt -4.97 vs last sale · ≈ $1,743/hd at 515 lb · 11 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 196 396 525
Feeder cattle 167 358 435
Slaughter cattle 28 31 68
Replacement cattle 1 7 22

Market comments — USDA reporter

No trends in the market due to limited head to head comparisons, however the feeder market appeared steady with a limited supply and good demand for quality feeders, weaned packages and guaranteed open heifers. Slaughter cows and bulls were 1.00 to 3.00 lower with a light test and moderate 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
280 fancy 280 1 470.00 $470.00 $1,316 —
387–395 fancy 391 4 482.50–492.00 $487.20 $1,905 —
446 fancy 446 3 462.50 $462.50 $2,063 —
480 fancy 480 1 467.50 $467.50 $2,244 —
500–525 value added 514 4 377.50–397.50 $390.57 $2,008 —
515 515 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,802 -18.46
575–590 584 4 342.50–355.00 $349.42 $2,041 +8.18
620–625 623 2 340.00–367.50 $353.81 $2,204 -2.19
695 695 1 310.00 $310.00 $2,154 -25.00
775 value added 775 8 333.00 $333.00 $2,581 —
806 value added 806 4 321.00 $321.00 $2,587 +1.00
825 825 3 290.00–305.00 $300.00 $2,475 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
640 640 1 328.00 $328.00 $2,099 +16.53
780 780 1 277.50 $277.50 $2,164 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
660 660 1 307.50 $307.50 $2,030 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 1 335.00 $335.00 $1,055 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1175 1175 1 200.00 $200.00 $2,350 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
265 265 1 387.00 $387.00 $1,026 —
355–375 365 2 375.00–385.00 $380.14 $1,388 -14.86
420 fancy 420 2 410.00 $410.00 $1,722 —
445 445 1 375.00 $375.00 $1,669 +50.00
470–485 478 2 359.00–365.00 $361.95 $1,730 —
536 536 3 346.00 $346.00 $1,855 -13.51
540 540 2 339.00 $339.00 $1,831 -20.51
570–580 575 2 327.00 $327.00 $1,880 -1.47
670 670 1 300.00 $300.00 $2,010 -27.50
710–735 723 2 270.00–280.00 $275.09 $1,989 -28.53
844 844 7 287.00 $287.00 $2,422 —
998 998 37 282.00 $282.00 $2,814 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–396 386 4 340.00–360.00 $355.40 $1,372 —
495–497 496 3 335.00–347.50 $339.16 $1,682 +21.83
632 632 2 285.00 $285.00 $1,801 ±0.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
295 295 1 282.50 $282.50 $833 —
470 470 1 277.50 $277.50 $1,304 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
200 200 —— 1 415.00 $415.00 $830 —
250 fancy 250 —— 1 500.00 $500.00 $1,250 —
350–365 358 —— 2 400.00–420.00 $409.79 $1,467 —
365–395 fancy 380 —— 2 445.00–455.00 $450.20 $1,711 —
435–440 fancy 438 —— 2 425.00–435.00 $429.97 $1,883 —
445 445 —— 1 380.00 $380.00 $1,691 -5.50
512–540 515 —— 11 330.00–351.00 $338.50 $1,743 -4.97
570–585 576 —— 5 339.00–345.00 $341.78 $1,969 +35.95
620–645 631 —— 5 318.00–323.00 $319.81 $2,018 +11.71
655–660 658 —— 2 287.50–300.00 $293.73 $1,933 -17.21
1035 1035 —— 1 196.00 $196.00 $2,029 —
1120 1120 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 1 194.00 $194.00 $2,173 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
180 180 1 407.50 $407.50 $734 —
395 395 1 385.00 $385.00 $1,521 —
420 420 1 365.00 $365.00 $1,533 +4.79
477–485 480 3 336.00–355.00 $342.40 $1,644 -11.43
520–545 533 2 305.00–315.00 $310.12 $1,653 —
785 785 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,923 —
880 880 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,936 -12.50
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 410 2 327.50 $327.50 $1,343 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
735 735 1 280.00 $280.00 $2,058 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
900–1160 1051 85-90% 5 135.00–149.00 $142.61 $1,499 -15.61
940–1200 1105 85-90% 3 154.00–157.00 $156.15 $1,725 —
1165 1165 85-90% 1 130.50 $130.50 $1,520 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1320–1645 1500 75-80% 5 161.50–169.00 $166.26 $2,494 —
1785 1785 75-80% 1 154.50 $154.50 $2,758 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1050–1360 1204 80-85% 4 154.00–166.00 $160.91 $1,937 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1300–2000 1736 7 184.00–197.50 $192.32 $3,339 —
1830 1830 1 211.50 $211.50 $3,870 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
860 860 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,806

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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.