Cattle Market Pulse

Cattleman's Livestock Market Report

Bowling Green, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, December 4, 2023

1,075 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Cattleman's Livestock report →

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $228.58/cwt +9.58 vs last sale · ≈ $1,319/hd at 577 lb · 69 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $197.11/cwt -1.38 vs last sale · ≈ $1,136/hd at 576 lb · 61 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $197.04/cwt +7.04 vs last sale · ≈ $1,007/hd at 511 lb · 55 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,075 268 903
Feeder cattle 1,021 221 843
Slaughter cattle 49 25 36
Replacement cattle 5 22 24

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Monday: Feeder steers and heifers sold 4.00-6.00 higher. Feeder buyers showed strong interest in the large, high quality offering. Slaughter cows and bulls traded 3.00-5.00 lower.

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
360–395 389 11 259.00–262.50 $261.91 $1,019 +31.34
447 447 3 232.00 $232.00 $1,037 —
457–494 fancy 467 18 242.00–244.00 $242.59 $1,133 —
465–498 472 9 219.00–234.00 $224.36 $1,059 -14.64
518–523 523 23 238.00–239.00 $238.91 $1,249 +20.91
573 value added 573 28 236.50 $236.50 $1,355 —
568–585 580 41 210.00–231.00 $223.17 $1,294 +4.17
605–645 642 49 205.00–225.50 $223.31 $1,434 —
663–677 669 30 210.00–214.00 $212.25 $1,420 —
714–741 722 36 211.00–213.50 $212.72 $1,536 -3.28
774 774 39 210.25 $210.25 $1,627 —
828–830 828 41 181.00–192.00 $191.46 $1,585 —
965–968 967 3 179.00–185.00 $183.00 $1,770 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 410 1 200.00 $200.00 $820 -10.00
490 490 1 192.50 $192.50 $943 -12.50
510 510 2 200.00 $200.00 $1,020 +7.19
585 585 1 195.00 $195.00 $1,141 +10.00
625–628 627 3 182.50–192.50 $185.82 $1,165 —
688 688 2 192.00 $192.00 $1,321 +14.50
708–722 720 22 188.00–190.00 $189.73 $1,366 -0.27
765–790 787 8 188.50–191.00 $188.80 $1,486 +1.80
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
565 565 1 167.50 $167.50 $946 —
715 715 1 172.50 $172.50 $1,233 -2.50
750–795 766 4 177.50–180.00 $179.35 $1,374 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
249 249 4 228.00 $228.00 $568 —
280 280 2 230.00 $230.00 $644 —
350–385 356 9 200.00–215.00 $210.54 $750 -11.96
407–415 409 31 200.00–218.00 $213.29 $872 —
457–483 463 50 194.00–200.00 $197.80 $916 +2.76
506–520 511 55 180.00–200.50 $197.04 $1,007 +7.04
564–596 574 43 180.00–197.00 $192.13 $1,103 -1.87
582 value added 582 18 209.00 $209.00 $1,216 +10.15
607–635 616 44 187.00–195.50 $192.11 $1,183 +5.68
663–697 692 39 180.00–180.50 $180.17 $1,247 —
785–798 795 4 159.00–164.00 $160.23 $1,274 —
800 800 3 174.00 $174.00 $1,392 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255–290 273 2 185.00–195.00 $189.68 $518 —
315–320 318 2 185.00 $185.00 $588 —
465–486 476 11 157.50–178.00 $168.91 $804 +8.91
515 515 1 165.00 $165.00 $850 —
568 568 8 170.00 $170.00 $966 —
622–635 625 4 165.00–172.50 $166.90 $1,043 +14.40
670–694 685 13 166.50–170.00 $167.82 $1,150 —
870 870 1 165.00 $165.00 $1,436 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280 280 1 240.00 $240.00 $672 +10.00
320–343 335 3 223.00–245.00 $230.00 $770 +10.00
353 fancy 353 10 255.00 $255.00 $900 —
414 414 4 223.00 $223.00 $923 -0.57
405–432 fancy 416 23 245.00–250.00 $247.97 $1,032 —
475–488 477 16 223.00–226.50 $226.05 $1,078 +10.13
505–510 506 28 209.00–220.50 $218.84 $1,107 +3.84
559 559 14 209.00 $209.00 $1,168 -2.34
620–638 623 42 184.00–190.00 $188.83 $1,176 -2.58
691 691 13 176.50 $176.50 $1,220 —
730 730 1 163.00 $163.00 $1,190 —
775 775 7 172.00 $172.00 $1,333 +12.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
224 224 4 210.00 $210.00 $470 —
305–335 323 3 200.00–215.00 $206.75 $668 +1.75
400–438 411 13 206.00–212.00 $208.10 $855 —
513 513 2 192.00 $192.00 $985 +2.00
560–570 563 4 187.50–190.00 $188.13 $1,059 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320 320 1 195.00 $195.00 $624 —
360–388 379 3 187.50–195.00 $189.88 $720 —
450–480 465 2 185.00–187.50 $186.21 $866 —
529 529 5 181.00 $181.00 $957 +36.00
573 573 3 172.50 $172.50 $988 —
644 644 5 170.00 $170.00 $1,095 —
935 935 1 142.50 $142.50 $1,332 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
468 468 9 153.00 $153.00 $716 —
540 540 2 132.50 $132.50 $716 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
940 940 85-90% 1 102.50 $102.50 $964 —
875–1045 961 85-90% 7 50.00–69.00 $62.56 $601 —
1015–1030 1023 85-90% 2 81.00–82.50 $81.76 $836 +22.76
1020–1275 1088 85-90% 6 71.00–76.50 $73.97 $805 -5.03
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1235–1300 1268 75-80% 2 82.00–83.00 $82.51 $1,046 —
1235–1550 1411 75-80% 7 91.00–97.00 $94.97 $1,340 +8.98
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1105–1235 1157 80-85% 5 73.50–79.50 $75.95 $879 -7.70
1165 1165 80-85% 1 84.50 $84.50 $984 +0.85
1275 1275 80-85% 1 64.00 $64.00 $816 —
1285 1285 80-85% 1 90.00 $90.00 $1,156 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1175–1975 1405 6 95.00–106.00 $100.94 $1,418 —
2160 2160 1 119.00 $119.00 $2,570 —
2415 2415 1 110.00 $110.00 $2,656 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1130 1130 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,150.00 $1,150.00

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Bred Cows

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
880 880 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,150.00 $1,150.00
960 960 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 900.00 $900.00

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Dairy Steers

Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
635 635 1 140.00 $140.00 $889 —
750 750 1 121.00 $121.00 $908 —

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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.