Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, June 3, 2026

422 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 9-weight M&L 1-2 steers $310.00/cwt ≈ $3,088/hd at 996 lb · 100 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $346.00/cwt ≈ $2,671/hd at 772 lb · 69 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $339.00/cwt ≈ $2,997/hd at 884 lb · 51 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 422 166 522
Feeder cattle 368 104 410
Slaughter cattle 41 35 58
Replacement cattle 13 27 54

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday the feeder market was cheaper with an average quality offering. Feeder steers and heifers 600 lbs and under were 5.00 to 7.00 lower or greater in spots with a moderate supply and moderate demand. Slaughter cows and bulls were 3.00 to 5.00 lower with an average supply 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
305 fancy 305 1 590.00 $590.00 $1,800 —
455–470 461 4 472.50–495.00 $483.10 $2,227 —
535 535 1 442.50 $442.50 $2,367 -17.50
567 567 2 450.00 $450.00 $2,552 —
615 615 1 422.50 $422.50 $2,598 -7.50
884 value added 884 51 339.00 $339.00 $2,997 —
957 957 2 273.00 $273.00 $2,613 —
997 value added 997 98 310.75 $310.75 $3,098 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
480 480 1 425.00 $425.00 $2,040 —
590 590 1 370.00 $370.00 $2,183 —
645 645 1 383.00 $383.00 $2,470 +3.00
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
570 570 1 410.00 $410.00 $2,337 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290 290 2 482.50–495.00 $488.75 $1,417 —
320 fancy 320 1 497.50 $497.50 $1,592 —
345 345 1 442.50 $442.50 $1,527 —
385 385 1 457.50 $457.50 $1,761 +7.50
400–425 413 3 430.00–445.00 $437.56 $1,807 -14.18
440 fancy 440 1 467.50 $467.50 $2,057 -28.51
450 450 1 420.00 $420.00 $1,890 -0.81
505–530 value added 513 3 400.00–417.50 $411.48 $2,111 -8.93
515 515 1 375.00 $375.00 $1,931 -30.00
530 530 1 385.00 $385.00 $2,040 -20.00
571 value added 571 4 425.00 $425.00 $2,427 —
562–580 574 9 370.00–390.00 $382.31 $2,194 -7.69
608–610 609 4 370.00 $370.00 $2,253 -7.50
655 655 1 347.50 $347.50 $2,276 +2.50
663 663 17 391.50 $391.50 $2,596 +46.50
735–740 738 3 315.00–320.00 $318.34 $2,349 -4.16
772 value added 772 69 346.00 $346.00 $2,671 —
945 945 1 250.00 $250.00 $2,362 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280 280 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,120 —
390 390 1 410.00 $410.00 $1,599 —
485–498 495 4 375.00–395.00 $379.90 $1,881 —
505–540 519 5 365.00–367.50 $366.46 $1,902 -8.18
565 565 3 345.00–347.50 $345.83 $1,954 +0.83
600 600 2 327.50 $327.50 $1,965 +7.38
680–697 691 3 282.50–290.00 $284.96 $1,969 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,287 —
450–495 473 2 310.00–315.00 $312.38 $1,478 -37.62
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 367.50 $367.50 $1,452 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205–220 213 2 500.00–510.00 $505.18 $1,076 —
252 252 2 470.00 $470.00 $1,184 —
400 400 1 460.00 $460.00 $1,840 -74.44
600 fancy 600 7 420.00 $420.00 $2,520 —
615–645 626 4 355.00–380.00 $368.80 $2,309 -11.20
650–665 658 2 370.00–382.50 $376.32 $2,476 —
800–815 808 2 312.50–322.00 $317.21 $2,563 +32.21
870 870 1 317.00 $317.00 $2,758 +67.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
180 180 2 475.00 $475.00 $855 —
230 230 1 430.00 $430.00 $989 —
430 430 1 440.00 $440.00 $1,892 —
460–485 473 3 425.00–430.00 $427.54 $2,022 -24.96
520 520 1 410.00 $410.00 $2,132 -20.00
630 630 1 337.50 $337.50 $2,126 —
720 720 1 300.00 $300.00 $2,160 —
800 800 2 290.00 $290.00 $2,320 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290 290 1 325.00 $325.00 $942 -77.50
305 305 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,006 -83.72
355 355 1 370.00 $370.00 $1,314 —
455 455 1 390.00 $390.00 $1,774 —
745 745 1 267.50 $267.50 $1,993 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
965–1360 1186 85-90% 4 166.00–171.00 $168.82 $2,002 —
955–1415 1207 85-90% 6 142.00–154.00 $147.43 $1,779 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1260–1780 1484 75-80% 8 167.00–179.00 $170.08 $2,524 -16.03
1475–1540 1508 75-80% 2 154.50–160.00 $157.31 $2,372 -23.39
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1035–1545 1243 80-85% 5 168.00–179.00 $172.78 $2,148 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1135–2110 1647 3 205.00–216.00 $208.99 $3,442 —
1470–2030 1825 6 222.00–237.50 $228.24 $4,165 -3.07

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1040–1240 1161 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 181.00–229.00 $207.87 $2,413

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1310 1310 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 3,225.00 $3,225.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1160 1160 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,025.00 $2,025.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1210 1210 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 2,500.00 $2,500.00 —
1467 1467 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 2 2,800.00 $2,800.00 —
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1010 1010 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 3,250.00 $3,250.00 —

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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.