Cattle Market Pulse

Russell Co. Stockyard Market Report

Russell Springs, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 18, 2024

436 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Russell Co. Stockyard report →

light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $261.73/cwt +15.85 vs last sale · ≈ $1,640/hd at 627 lb · 89 head
light 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $321.17/cwt -13.43 vs last sale · ≈ $1,725/hd at 537 lb · 34 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $287.91/cwt +17.38 vs last sale · ≈ $1,811/hd at 629 lb · 23 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 436 1,305 445
Feeder cattle 387 1,243 384
Slaughter cattle 28 47 49
Replacement cattle 21 15 12

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday: Feeder steers under 600 lbs. sold sharply lower and those over 600 lbs. sold 4.00-6.00 higher. Feeder heifers traded 7.00-9.00 higher with instances of some heifers selling sharply higher. Today's offering lacked the high quality, weaned lightweight steers that was in last week's sale but overall feeder demand was very strong. Slaughter cows sold steady to 2.00 lower and slaughter bulls were 3.00-4.00 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
268 268 3 385.00 $385.00 $1,032 —
352–385 363 3 350.00–353.00 $351.06 $1,274 -13.94
402–435 413 3 319.00–322.00 $320.05 $1,322 -51.88
472 fancy 472 4 337.00 $337.00 $1,591 -48.50
526 value added 526 7 329.00 $329.00 $1,731 -15.02
516–544 540 27 317.00–321.00 $319.14 $1,723 -3.22
560–570 565 8 300.00–312.00 $303.35 $1,714 +5.04
603–640 629 23 276.00–290.00 $287.91 $1,811 +29.91
655 655 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,768 +2.23
705–745 732 6 248.00–258.00 $254.02 $1,859 +2.23
830 830 1 233.00 $233.00 $1,934 -1.64
1040 1040 1 198.00 $198.00 $2,059 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 305 1 305.00 $305.00 $930 —
455 455 1 277.50 $277.50 $1,263 -15.00
525–530 526 8 250.00–277.00 $256.80 $1,351 -6.57
610–630 620 2 221.00–244.00 $232.69 $1,443 +3.85
1125 1125 1 155.00 $155.00 $1,744 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470–490 482 5 296.00–302.50 $299.68 $1,444 -16.93

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 347.50 $347.50 $904 +29.20
310–325 318 2 327.50 $327.50 $1,041 ±0.00
350–365 358 2 332.00–337.00 $334.45 $1,197 +21.83
405 405 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,215 +13.00
455–485 475 4 282.50–299.00 $293.01 $1,392 +1.01
505–540 528 13 273.00–287.50 $277.70 $1,466 +11.22
550–562 560 10 270.00–274.00 $272.55 $1,526 +15.05
605 605 2 250.00 $250.00 $1,512 +4.12
627 value added 627 87 262.00 $262.00 $1,643 —
650–665 658 3 222.00–231.00 $226.30 $1,489 -5.43
700–730 718 4 223.00–235.50 $231.56 $1,663 +4.81
773 773 3 224.00 $224.00 $1,732 +9.28
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350–395 373 2 280.00–300.00 $289.40 $1,079 +16.80
415–435 425 2 270.00–275.00 $272.44 $1,158 +9.70
470–495 485 3 241.00–263.00 $254.51 $1,234 +3.55
530–545 537 4 240.00–267.50 $257.55 $1,383 +24.14
565–580 575 3 217.00–230.00 $224.79 $1,293 +6.79
615 615 1 232.00 $232.00 $1,427 +15.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
460 460 1 275.00 $275.00 $1,265 +2.96
550–580 562 3 250.00–255.00 $253.37 $1,424 +14.28

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300 fancy 300 1 400.00 $400.00 $1,200 —
307–345 321 4 342.00–362.50 $350.68 $1,126 +20.70
355–385 375 3 332.50–335.00 $334.21 $1,253 +11.71
410 fancy 410 1 338.00 $338.00 $1,386 —
410–430 420 2 296.00–302.50 $299.33 $1,257 -25.67
495 495 2 291.00 $291.00 $1,440 -14.82
530 fancy 530 1 297.00 $297.00 $1,574 —
520–545 537 5 272.00–282.00 $278.21 $1,494 -27.74
557 557 2 275.00 $275.00 $1,532 +5.20
601 601 3 248.00 $248.00 $1,490 -15.54
695 695 4 230.00 $230.00 $1,598 —
735 735 1 225.00 $225.00 $1,654 -18.00
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,089 —
380 380 1 307.50 $307.50 $1,168 —
440 440 1 282.50 $282.50 $1,243 +5.39
505 505 1 219.00 $219.00 $1,106 -43.92
655–685 670 2 212.00–214.00 $213.02 $1,427 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
475 475 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,330 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1190 1190 80-85% 1 95.50 $95.50 $1,136 —
1255 1255 80-85% 1 118.00 $118.00 $1,481 -7.00
1175–1585 1333 80-85% 6 100.00–110.00 $104.50 $1,393 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1060 1060 85-90% 1 100.00 $100.00 $1,060 +14.95
970–1275 1164 85-90% 4 80.00–91.00 $84.87 $988 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1360–1650 1458 75-80% 3 104.00–109.00 $107.13 $1,562 -12.99

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1105 1105 1 135.00 $135.00 $1,492 —
1360–2260 1665 4 115.00–125.00 $121.71 $2,026 —
1900–2025 1963 2 148.00–150.00 $148.97 $2,924 +5.59

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1100–1275 1182 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 1,975.00–2,050.00 $2,007.51
1195–1260 1228 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 2,350.00–2,400.00 $2,374.34
1235 1235 Aged (>8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,450.00 $1,450.00
1260 1260 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,700.00 $1,700.00
1280 1280 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,800.00 $1,800.00
1290–1415 1345 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 1,850.00–1,950.00 $1,900.50
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
880 880 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,825.00 $1,825.00
920 920 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,725.00 $1,725.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
800 800 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,650.00 $1,650.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
745 745 (<2 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,150.00 $1,150.00
780 780 (<2 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,425.00 $1,425.00

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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
1360 1360 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 3,050.00 $3,050.00 —
1745 1745 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 3,500.00 $3,500.00 —

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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.