Cattle Market Pulse

Cattleman's Livestock Market Report, Bowling Green, KY

Bowling Green, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, May 18, 2026

235 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $414.36/cwt +0.36 vs last sale · ≈ $2,755/hd at 665 lb · 19 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $501.98/cwt -0.94 vs last sale · ≈ $2,184/hd at 435 lb · 14 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 bulls $450.00/cwt -12.50 vs last sale · ≈ $2,264/hd at 503 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 235 220 294
Feeder cattle 164 176 145
Slaughter cattle 23 29 39
Replacement cattle 48 15 110

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Monday: No test on feeder steers due to a low number of comparisons. Feeder heifers sold sharply lower on a much smaller, plain quality offering. Slaughter cows sold 4.00-6.00 higher and slaughter bulls traded sharply higher.

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
435 435 2 500.00 $500.00 $2,175 —
450–498 482 3 475.00–500.00 $482.78 $2,327 —
525 525 1 450.00 $450.00 $2,362 -27.54
633 633 2 420.00 $420.00 $2,659 —
662–666 665 19 413.50–419.00 $414.36 $2,755 +0.36
859 859 8 329.00 $329.00 $2,826 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
646 646 5 400.00 $400.00 $2,584 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
460 460 1 390.00 $390.00 $1,794 -62.50
675 675 1 360.00 $360.00 $2,430 -20.17

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
235 235 1 560.00 $560.00 $1,316 —
398 398 3 450.00 $450.00 $1,791 -65.00
440 440 2 460.00 $460.00 $2,024 —
460 460 3 440.00 $440.00 $2,024 -21.11
515 515 4 410.00 $410.00 $2,112 -13.88
560–590 580 3 370.00–385.00 $374.83 $2,174 -22.83
700 700 1 340.00 $340.00 $2,380 +17.49
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
418–440 425 3 425.00–430.00 $426.72 $1,814 —
450–498 472 5 375.00–407.50 $397.94 $1,878 -31.98
525 525 1 382.50 $382.50 $2,008 +18.80
580 580 1 355.00 $355.00 $2,059 -10.01
700 700 1 300.00 $300.00 $2,100 —
790 790 1 285.00 $285.00 $2,252 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230 230 1 710.00 $710.00 $1,633 —
295 295 1 620.00 $620.00 $1,829 —
368 368 5 560.00 $560.00 $2,061 ±0.00
402–444 435 14 500.00–510.00 $501.98 $2,184 -0.94
503 503 10 450.00 $450.00 $2,264 -12.50
558 558 4 432.50 $432.50 $2,413 —
648 648 3 395.00 $395.00 $2,560 —
733 733 2 345.00 $345.00 $2,529 -20.00
750–775 757 6 335.00–350.00 $345.77 $2,617 -4.23
833 833 2 325.00 $325.00 $2,707 —
883 883 5 305.00 $305.00 $2,693 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
245 245 1 660.00 $660.00 $1,617 —
313 313 2 445.00 $445.00 $1,393 —
360 360 2 515.00–540.00 $527.50 $1,899 —
452–485 460 4 375.00–430.00 $415.51 $1,911 —
515–520 517 3 395.00–400.00 $398.32 $2,059 -37.51
610–620 615 2 355.00–365.00 $360.04 $2,214 +0.04
925 925 1 290.00 $290.00 $2,682 —
975 975 1 265.00 $265.00 $2,584 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 405.00 $405.00 $1,600 —
635 635 1 320.00 $320.00 $2,032 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1160 1160 (<2 yrs)N/A 1 2,600.00 $2,600.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1330 1330 75-80% 1 170.00 $170.00 $2,261 +6.53
1145–1735 1461 75-80% 11 177.50–194.00 $184.56 $2,696 +0.02
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
915 915 85-90% 1 165.00 $165.00 $1,510 —
1025 1025 85-90% 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,538 —
1265 1265 85-90% 1 135.00 $135.00 $1,708 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1040 1040 80-85% 1 195.00 $195.00 $2,028 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1330 1330 1 230.00 $230.00 $3,059 —
1555–2100 1828 2 210.00–211.00 $210.43 $3,847 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1110 1110 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 4,800.00 $4,800.00
1330 1330 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 4,700.00 $4,700.00
1360–1525 1438 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 9 4,350.00–5,250.00 $4,841.46
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1015 1015 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 3,200.00 $3,200.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1315 1315 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,950.00 $2,950.00

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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
1225–1255 1240 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 2 5,700.00–5,900.00 $5,798.79 —
1140–1420 1252 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 7 5,500.00–5,950.00 $5,724.16 —
1210–1370 1263 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 4 5,000.00–6,400.00 $5,692.08 —
1265 1265 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 1 5,500.00 $5,500.00 —
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
920 920 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 5,950.00 $5,950.00 —
1095 1095 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 4,500.00 $4,500.00 —

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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.