Cattle Market Pulse

Cattleman's Livestock Market Report

Bowling Green, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock · usually sells Mondays

Sale of Monday, August 31, 2026

152 head sold ·Official USDA report · Past reports (267)

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 152 81 0
Feeder cattle 116 74 0
Slaughter cattle 24 7 0
Replacement cattle 12 — 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Monday: No test on feeder steers. Feeder heifers sold 7.00-8.00 lower. Today's feeder offering lacked the quality of last week's and had very few comparisons. No trends available on slaughter cows and bulls due to the low number of cattle in last week's sale.

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
370–385 378 2 422.50–423.00 $422.75 $1,598 -52.25
587 587 5 350.00 $350.00 $2,054 +5.00
610–635 625 5 327.50–334.00 $330.04 $2,063 -6.45
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 1 405.00 $405.00 $1,904 —
570 570 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,767 —
670 670 1 310.00 $310.00 $2,077 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405 405 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,418 —
495 495 2 340.00 $340.00 $1,683 —
535 535 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,739 -7.50
560 560 2 315.00 $315.00 $1,764 -14.91
608 608 4 305.00 $305.00 $1,854 +3.80
703 703 2 260.00 $260.00 $1,828 —
795 795 2 275.00 $275.00 $2,186 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400 400 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,300 —
495 495 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,534 —
550 550 2 300.00 $300.00 $1,650 —
820 820 1 252.50 $252.50 $2,070 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
620 620 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,736 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 415.00 $415.00 $1,639 —
465–497 484 5 350.00–365.00 $359.24 $1,739 -44.01
520–549 543 5 331.00–347.00 $343.94 $1,868 -22.06
610–637 619 9 302.00–316.00 $311.20 $1,926 -12.81
703 703 2 285.00 $285.00 $2,004 —
750 750 1 280.00 $280.00 $2,100 —
1105 1105 1 216.00 $216.00 $2,387 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355 355 2 390.00 $390.00 $1,384 —
595 595 1 307.50 $307.50 $1,830 —
613–649 637 6 295.00–296.00 $295.68 $1,883 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
523 523 8 320.00 $320.00 $1,674 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 2 309.00 $309.00 $1,622 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1095–1235 1184 80-85% 4 143.00–146.00 $145.05 $1,717 —
1130–1280 1203 80-85% 3 155.00–162.50 $157.35 $1,893 —
1205 1205 80-85% 1 126.00 $126.00 $1,518 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1100–1520 1337 75-80% 3 155.00–157.50 $156.64 $2,094 —
1430 1430 75-80% 1 150.00 $150.00 $2,145 +30.00
1750 1750 75-80% 1 169.00 $169.00 $2,958 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
985 985 85-90% 1 155.00 $155.00 $1,527 —
1135 1135 85-90% 1 137.00 $137.00 $1,555 —
1220 1220 85-90% 1 107.50 $107.50 $1,312 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1070–1545 1308 2 190.00–191.00 $190.41 $2,491 —
1815–2060 1938 2 200.00 $200.00 $3,876 —

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Stock Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
895 895 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,835
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
935 935 (<2 yrs)Open 1 234.00 $234.00 $2,188

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Bred Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1060 1060 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,500.00 $2,500.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1355 1355 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,450.00 $2,450.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
865 865 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 2,000.00 $2,000.00 —
895 895 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 1,875.00 $1,875.00 —
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
995 995 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,900.00 $2,900.00 —

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Price trend

high 427.50 low 305.00 Sep 2025 Aug 2026

600–649 lb Medium and Large 1-2 steers — head-weighted average $/cwt by sale date, last 12 months.

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.

← Previous sale (Aug 24, 2026)

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