Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, July 8, 2026

493 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $520.80/cwt +51.33 vs last sale · ≈ $2,678/hd at 514 lb · 72 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $485.97/cwt +37.21 vs last sale · ≈ $2,364/hd at 486 lb · 60 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $437.38/cwt +17.29 vs last sale · ≈ $2,317/hd at 530 lb · 47 head
Mt. Sterling, KY 5-weight heifers sold at $436/cwt, among the strongest in the state—$10/cwt above the KY average ($426) and $13/cwt under Lexington, KY ($449). The state's 5-weight heifer class has been steady without recent major moves. What this means — computed from this report and its neighbors

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 493 282 532
Feeder cattle 447 226 376
Slaughter cattle 38 31 56
Replacement cattle 8 25 100

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday: No trends due to market being closed last week for July 4th Holiday. However the feeder market appeared firm and stronger in spots with a strong demand for higher quality feeders and long weaned calves.

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
351 fancy 351 4 605.00 $605.00 $2,124 +20.03
423–445 433 9 505.00–515.00 $510.66 $2,211 +28.16
470 470 1 495.00 $495.00 $2,326 +16.13
505–512 value added 512 66 508.00–526.25 $525.16 $2,689 +30.16
525–545 538 6 460.00–482.50 $472.88 $2,544 +16.17
555–570 563 2 420.00–425.00 $422.47 $2,379 -14.42
563 value added 563 4 473.00 $473.00 $2,663 -3.25
612–635 value added 613 25 450.00–467.00 $466.30 $2,858 +16.30
625–638 633 5 422.00–430.00 $425.16 $2,691 +12.66
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
360 360 1 490.00 $490.00 $1,764 —
485 485 1 440.00 $440.00 $2,134 +5.00
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
605 605 1 370.00 $370.00 $2,238 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220 fancy 220 1 620.00 $620.00 $1,364 —
250 fancy 250 2 570.00 $570.00 $1,425 —
260–265 263 2 515.00–517.50 $516.24 $1,358 -6.35
320–348 338 9 467.00–490.00 $475.00 $1,606 -20.00
380–385 383 3 470.00–472.50 $470.83 $1,803 +1.00
400–440 414 11 455.00–478.00 $472.32 $1,955 +18.14
455–485 466 10 440.00–460.00 $448.85 $2,092 +21.38
455–496 fancy 475 9 468.00–478.00 $472.44 $2,244 +5.93
494 value added 494 41 498.00 $498.00 $2,460 —
502–535 value added 529 45 430.00–449.00 $438.60 $2,320 -1.40
545 545 2 410.00 $410.00 $2,234 -0.14
552–585 568 9 397.00–420.00 $410.73 $2,333 +8.91
582 value added 582 30 440.00 $440.00 $2,561 -5.00
619 619 14 418.00 $418.00 $2,587 +41.95
632–635 633 3 360.00–380.00 $366.69 $2,321 -9.36
650–695 665 6 330.00–346.00 $341.20 $2,269 —
745 745 1 335.00 $335.00 $2,496 -10.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400 400 1 450.00 $450.00 $1,800 —
578–585 579 5 385.00–386.00 $385.80 $2,234 +10.80
610 610 1 340.00 $340.00 $2,074 -7.50
855 855 1 250.00 $250.00 $2,138 +50.00
Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
545 545 2 358.00 $358.00 $1,951 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 1 340.00 $340.00 $1,139 —
495 495 1 320.00 $320.00 $1,584 -45.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
215 215 1 575.00 $575.00 $1,236 —
260–262 thin fleshed 261 3 620.00–630.00 $626.68 $1,636 +11.68
310 thin fleshed 310 1 660.00 $660.00 $2,046 —
315–330 fancy 323 2 557.50–577.50 $567.73 $1,834 -42.27
370 370 1 555.00 $555.00 $2,054 +50.79
377 fancy 377 2 580.00 $580.00 $2,187 —
406–427 fancy 414 5 505.00–520.00 $513.82 $2,127 —
415–420 417 3 475.00–496.00 $488.94 $2,039 -6.06
450–465 461 6 470.00 $470.00 $2,167 -5.00
470 fancy 470 1 505.00 $505.00 $2,374 —
506–540 520 11 440.00–465.00 $455.28 $2,367 +20.87
551–557 553 5 457.00–460.00 $458.79 $2,537 +18.79
673 673 3 377.00 $377.00 $2,537 +37.00
795 795 1 295.00 $295.00 $2,345 —
980 980 1 265.00 $265.00 $2,597 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210 210 1 520.00 $520.00 $1,092 —
385 385 1 502.50 $502.50 $1,935 +21.67
420 420 1 435.00 $435.00 $1,827 —
477 477 2 440.00 $440.00 $2,099 +5.00
567–570 568 3 415.00–430.00 $424.98 $2,414 +34.98
620–632 626 4 345.00–355.00 $350.05 $2,191 +10.05
790 790 1 257.50 $257.50 $2,034 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1400 1400 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 1 3,100.00 $3,100.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
715 715 85-90% 1 141.00 $141.00 $1,008 —
845–1335 1021 85-90% 9 150.00–170.00 $162.53 $1,659 +22.53
965–1340 1165 85-90% 3 178.00–181.00 $178.83 $2,083 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1160 1160 80-85% 1 190.00 $190.00 $2,204 —
1160–1365 1242 80-85% 5 175.00–185.00 $181.06 $2,249 -0.42
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1135–1545 1345 75-80% 3 177.00–184.00 $179.68 $2,417 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1855–1990 1912 3 233.50–234.00 $233.84 $4,471 —
1785–2065 1952 3 219.50–227.50 $224.36 $4,380 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1140–1520 1223 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 6 163.00–199.00 $184.73 $2,259

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1160 1160 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,350.00 $2,350.00
1215 1215 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 3,200.00 $3,200.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1430 1430 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 4,300.00 $4,300.00 —
1455 1455 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 1 3,400.00 $3,400.00 —

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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.