Cattle Market Pulse

Cattleman's Livestock Market Report

Bowling Green, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, March 18, 2024

286 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $279.35/cwt +14.13 vs last sale · ≈ $1,173/hd at 420 lb · 30 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $319.53/cwt +6.95 vs last sale · ≈ $1,364/hd at 427 lb · 27 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $298.00/cwt +18.00 vs last sale · ≈ $1,557/hd at 522 lb · 20 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 286 164 148
Feeder cattle 233 141 124
Slaughter cattle 30 20 18
Replacement cattle 23 3 6

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Monday: A light test on feeder steers due to low receipts last week. Feeder heifers sold 4.00-6.00 lower with exception of the 400-500 lb. calves and they sold sharply higher. The difference in feeder prices today was strictly based on quality and condition. Slaughter cows sold 7.00-9.00 higher and no trend on slaughter bulls.

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
350 350 1 340.00 $340.00 $1,190 —
440 440 1 311.00 $311.00 $1,368 +2.00
486 value added 486 5 319.00 $319.00 $1,550 —
535 535 1 293.00 $293.00 $1,568 -8.00
570–579 578 6 272.50–285.00 $274.56 $1,587 -12.44
589 value added 589 8 306.00 $306.00 $1,802 +6.00
683 683 2 260.50 $260.50 $1,779 -8.50
693 value added 693 2 265.00 $265.00 $1,836 —
758–766 764 7 236.00–240.00 $238.87 $1,825 —
945 945 2 196.00 $196.00 $1,852 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
430–441 439 5 265.00–291.00 $285.90 $1,255 —
485 485 3 245.00 $245.00 $1,188 —
708 708 2 227.00 $227.00 $1,607 +10.00
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
435 435 1 271.00 $271.00 $1,179 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
348 348 2 287.00 $287.00 $999 -2.77
350–378 370 7 272.00–274.00 $272.54 $1,008 -23.30
406–449 420 30 276.00–282.00 $279.35 $1,173 +14.13
488 488 9 278.50 $278.50 $1,359 +13.66
520–525 523 2 250.00–267.00 $258.46 $1,352 -3.17
560–573 566 5 230.00–247.00 $237.72 $1,345 -8.16
635 635 5 235.00 $235.00 $1,492 -6.21
655 655 2 225.00 $225.00 $1,474 —
700–705 704 4 202.00–213.00 $204.74 $1,441 -5.04
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 1 245.00 $245.00 $808 —
350–395 370 3 225.00–235.00 $230.14 $852 —
460–472 469 5 220.00–245.00 $238.60 $1,119 +8.60
550 550 1 227.50 $227.50 $1,251 -1.50
650–680 662 3 197.00–203.00 $200.78 $1,329 +12.78
745 745 1 193.00 $193.00 $1,438 —
785 785 1 185.00 $185.00 $1,452 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
560 560 1 197.00 $197.00 $1,103 —
670 670 2 190.00–192.00 $191.00 $1,280 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
282–290 284 4 330.00–334.00 $331.02 $940 +20.02
377 377 6 326.00 $326.00 $1,229 —
411 fancy 411 10 329.50 $329.50 $1,354 +8.00
413–447 436 17 313.00–316.00 $313.67 $1,368 +8.52
462–470 463 7 295.00–309.00 $297.03 $1,375 +2.03
503 fancy 503 11 307.00 $307.00 $1,544 —
546 546 9 287.00 $287.00 $1,567 +7.00
583 583 2 285.00 $285.00 $1,662 +1.41
608–648 635 9 266.50–278.50 $270.33 $1,717 +2.18
685 685 1 259.00 $259.00 $1,774 +10.23
770 770 1 217.50 $217.50 $1,675 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 340 1 302.00 $302.00 $1,027 —
353–370 359 3 275.00–286.00 $282.22 $1,013 —
445 445 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,246 —
470 470 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,363 +30.00
510–545 522 3 262.50–279.00 $273.25 $1,426 —
595 595 1 268.00 $268.00 $1,595 —
670 670 1 199.00 $199.00 $1,333 -16.00
810–840 825 2 187.50–199.00 $193.35 $1,595 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 375 1 220.00 $220.00 $825 —
430 430 1 224.00 $224.00 $963 -1.00
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
680 680 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,700 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
820–1115 987 85-90% 3 70.00–75.00 $72.44 $715 —
1045 1045 85-90% 1 86.00 $86.00 $899 —
975–1115 1047 85-90% 3 91.00–100.00 $96.50 $1,010 —
945–1155 1050 85-90% 2 116.00 $116.00 $1,218 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1255–1500 1366 75-80% 4 112.00–120.00 $114.95 $1,570 +7.92
1255–1480 1367 75-80% 5 126.00–146.00 $131.57 $1,799 +24.54
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1180 1180 80-85% 1 95.00 $95.00 $1,121 -14.52
1010–1285 1183 80-85% 7 111.00–118.00 $115.84 $1,370 +6.32

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1085–1685 1385 2 121.00–123.00 $121.78 $1,687 —
1780 1780 1 139.00 $139.00 $2,474 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1050 1050 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,225.00 $1,225.00
1060 1060 Aged (>8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,300.00 $1,300.00
1105 1105 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,110.00 $1,110.00
1165–1320 1217 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 1,225.00–1,425.00 $1,297.33
1170–1470 1320 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,575.00–2,025.00 $1,825.57
1470 1470 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,800.00 $1,800.00
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
995 995 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,650.00 $1,650.00

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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
1000 1000 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,325.00 $2,325.00 —
905–1115 1010 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 2,150.00–2,175.00 $2,161.20 —
1040–1185 fancy 1113 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 2,725.00–2,950.00 $2,844.83 —
1165 1165 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 2,450.00 $2,450.00 —
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1030 1030 Aged (>8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 2,150.00 $2,150.00 —

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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.