Cattle Market Pulse

Cattleman's Livestock Market Report

Bowling Green, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, April 29, 2024

113 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 113 190 172
Feeder cattle 83 145 145
Slaughter cattle 24 38 23
Replacement cattle 6 7 4

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Monday: Feeder steers and heifers sold steady to 3.00 higher on limited comparisons due to fewer calves being offered today. Slaughter cows sold fully steady and no test 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
400 400 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,320 +20.00
463 463 3 316.00 $316.00 $1,463 —
524 524 6 307.00 $307.00 $1,609 -2.00
615–633 627 3 272.00–275.00 $272.98 $1,712 +9.51
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
515–520 518 2 279.00–285.00 $281.99 $1,461 —
660 660 1 246.00 $246.00 $1,624 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 1 302.50 $302.50 $938 —
385 385 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,194 +29.00
471–485 473 8 261.00–279.00 $276.69 $1,309 -4.22
525 525 3 260.00 $260.00 $1,365 —
550–585 575 9 243.00–250.50 $246.39 $1,417 -2.21
655 655 1 227.00 $227.00 $1,487 +16.00
662–689 value added 679 8 235.00 $235.00 $1,596 —
772 value added 772 3 214.00 $214.00 $1,652 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
435 435 2 256.00 $256.00 $1,114 —
528 528 2 241.00 $241.00 $1,272 -9.28
635 635 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,460 +2.73
765 765 1 184.00 $184.00 $1,408 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 1 228.00 $228.00 $1,072 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 1 337.50 $337.50 $1,063 —
405 405 4 329.00 $329.00 $1,332 +20.85
455–470 460 3 295.00–315.00 $308.19 $1,418 +0.69
500–545 530 3 282.00–292.50 $285.30 $1,512 -8.68
620 620 1 246.00 $246.00 $1,525 -2.37
690 690 1 230.00 $230.00 $1,587 —
725 725 1 239.00 $239.00 $1,733 +5.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
540 540 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,458 +32.50
550–590 570 2 241.00–248.00 $244.38 $1,393 —
748 748 2 190.00 $190.00 $1,421 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1440 1440 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 1 2,000.00 $2,000.00 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355 355 1 252.50 $252.50 $896 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1150–1445 1306 75-80% 4 119.00–129.50 $124.14 $1,621 —
1350 1350 75-80% 1 110.00 $110.00 $1,485 -21.92
1300–1480 1406 75-80% 4 131.00–141.00 $134.39 $1,890 +12.38
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1150–1165 1158 80-85% 2 122.00–124.00 $123.01 $1,424 —
1080–1335 1204 80-85% 4 111.00–118.00 $114.90 $1,383 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1000–1050 1030 85-90% 3 104.00–108.00 $106.65 $1,098 —
1045 1045 85-90% 1 100.00 $100.00 $1,045 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1770–2200 1985 2 140.00–145.00 $142.23 $2,823 —
2220 2220 1 158.00 $158.00 $3,508 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1095 thin fleshed 1095 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,300.00 $1,300.00
1150 1150 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,700.00 $1,700.00
1360 1360 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,550.00 $1,550.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
905 905 (<2 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,125.00 $1,125.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1025 1025 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,725.00 $1,725.00

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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.