Cattle Market Pulse

Bluegrass Stockyard Market Report, Mt. Sterling, KY

Mt. Sterling, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, August 19, 2026

221 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $366.30/cwt -32.87 vs last sale · ≈ $1,949/hd at 532 lb · 13 head
HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 221 345 196
Feeder cattle 177 322 167
Slaughter cattle 23 15 28
Replacement cattle 21 8 1

Compared to last Wednesday both the feeder and slaughter markets were lower with an average quality offering. Feeder steers and heifers were 6.00 to 10.00 lower or greater in spots with a moderate supply and moderate demand. Slaughter cows were 6.00 to 10.00 lower with a moderate supply and slaughter bulls appeared lower as well but with limited comparisons.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
235 235 1 535.00 $535.00 $1,257 —
295 295 1 525.00 $525.00 $1,549 +25.00
442 442 2 470.00 $470.00 $2,077 -10.00
467–472 470 4 425.00–445.00 $435.05 $2,045 —
505–530 524 4 432.50–436.00 $435.16 $2,280 -17.03
565 565 1 422.00 $422.00 $2,384 -13.42
620–625 622 3 367.50–372.50 $370.84 $2,307 -45.16
660–690 680 3 345.00–360.00 $349.85 $2,379 -16.43
720 720 1 346.00 $346.00 $2,491 —
765 765 1 302.50 $302.50 $2,314 -47.50
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
385 385 1 450.00 $450.00 $1,732 -2.50
410–425 418 2 430.00–440.00 $434.91 $1,818 —
555 555 1 380.00 $380.00 $2,109 -10.00
640 640 1 320.00 $320.00 $2,048 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
585 585 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,930 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
215 215 1 465.00 $465.00 $1,000 —
315–340 330 4 412.50–450.00 $435.40 $1,437 —
355–380 365 3 410.00–440.00 $423.20 $1,545 -21.80
400–425 419 4 420.00–442.50 $437.13 $1,832 -5.37
480–495 490 5 365.00–390.00 $379.44 $1,859 -29.56
505–545 532 13 350.00–380.00 $366.30 $1,949 +6.30
555–580 572 3 332.00–350.00 $338.50 $1,936 -10.83
660 660 1 312.00 $312.00 $2,059 -31.00
730 730 1 307.00 $307.00 $2,241 -28.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 1 425.00 $425.00 $1,169 —
315–340 325 3 385.00–402.50 $392.74 $1,276 -34.59
375 375 1 390.00 $390.00 $1,462 -15.00
400–445 423 2 362.50–370.00 $366.05 $1,548 -4.08
482–495 486 3 347.50 $347.50 $1,689 -17.64
500–520 505 4 320.00–325.00 $323.76 $1,635 —
575 575 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,782 —
700 700 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,960 —
790 790 1 260.00 $260.00 $2,054 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285–295 290 2 300.00–340.00 $320.34 $929 —
305–330 318 2 345.00 $345.00 $1,097 —
570 570 1 272.50 $272.50 $1,553 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205 205 1 540.00 $540.00 $1,107 —
280 280 2 522.50 $522.50 $1,463 —
327–345 336 4 485.00–507.50 $490.78 $1,649 —
352 fancy 352 2 515.00 $515.00 $1,813 —
380–395 386 7 450.00–475.00 $463.42 $1,789 —
400–442 415 8 450.00–482.50 $454.84 $1,888 —
450–475 463 2 445.00–467.50 $455.95 $2,111 +2.45
500–530 520 3 400.00–417.50 $411.55 $2,140 -28.45
552–590 567 5 367.50–390.00 $380.36 $2,157 -22.14
625–630 627 5 340.00–362.50 $348.49 $2,185 —
670–690 683 4 330.00–348.00 $340.26 $2,324 -23.24
700–740 720 2 307.50–325.00 $316.01 $2,275 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
285–295 290 2 455.00 $455.00 $1,320 —
415 415 1 407.50 $407.50 $1,691 -35.58
455–477 470 3 400.00–425.00 $416.93 $1,960 +4.93
510–547 525 8 380.00–385.00 $383.07 $2,011 —
565 565 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,978 ±0.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230 230 1 375.00 $375.00 $862 —
320 320 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,120 —
437 437 2 377.50 $377.50 $1,650 —
480 480 1 360.00 $360.00 $1,728 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
815 815 1 252.50 $252.50 $2,058 —

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Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
920 920 85-90% 1 105.00 $105.00 $966 —
780–1355 1025 85-90% 12 130.00–154.00 $140.87 $1,444 —
1280 1280 85-90% 1 172.00 $172.00 $2,202 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1325–1575 1400 75-80% 6 161.50–175.00 $168.43 $2,358 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1280 1248 80-85% 2 168.00–175.00 $171.41 $2,139 —

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YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1210 1210 1 185.00 $185.00 $2,238 —
1605–2215 1855 4 211.00–214.50 $212.97 $3,951 —

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
985 985 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,400.00 $2,400.00
1090 1090 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,400.00 $2,400.00
1217 1217 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 2,850.00 $2,850.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800–1285 1043 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 2,125.00–2,450.00 $2,325.30

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1060–1400 1230 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 2 3,525.00–3,575.00 $3,553.46 —
1345 1345 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 1 3,275.00 $3,275.00 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1105 1105 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 3,400.00 $3,400.00 —
1125 1125 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 2,350.00 $2,350.00 —

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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.