Cattle Market Pulse

Russell Co. Stockyard Market Report

Russell Springs, Kentucky · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 3, 2025

693 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $313.67/cwt ≈ $2,293/hd at 731 lb · 78 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1-2 steers $322.25/cwt +2.25 vs last sale · ≈ $2,897/hd at 899 lb · 60 head
light 6-weight M&L 1-2 steers $357.37/cwt -12.66 vs last sale · ≈ $2,209/hd at 618 lb · 36 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 693 526 622
Feeder cattle 615 471 525
Slaughter cattle 69 24 78
Replacement cattle 9 31 19

Market comments — USDA reporter

No trends available due to the market closure last week in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. Feeder buyers showed strong demand across all classes of feeder calves despite continued uncertainty in futures trading. Much better demand for slaughter cows and bulls than was seen in the previous sales.

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
317–335 326 4 432.00–435.00 $433.54 $1,413 —
405–440 424 4 412.00–432.00 $423.94 $1,798 +31.94
426 fancy 426 3 442.00 $442.00 $1,883 —
450–492 479 5 384.00–400.00 $393.55 $1,885 -6.45
490–492 value added 492 10 412.00–418.50 $417.15 $2,052 —
507 value added 507 2 425.00 $425.00 $2,155 —
505–537 517 14 382.00–404.00 $393.44 $2,034 +16.80
553–585 569 12 360.00–368.00 $364.13 $2,072 -2.25
575–599 value added 591 15 371.00–374.00 $371.87 $2,198 -6.28
602–630 value added 607 17 365.00–370.50 $369.38 $2,242 -2.94
617–642 628 19 340.00–362.00 $346.63 $2,177 -19.87
655 value added 655 4 365.00 $365.00 $2,391 +4.00
650–699 683 18 342.00–356.00 $347.27 $2,372 -2.43
709 value added 709 15 341.50 $341.50 $2,421 —
710–735 728 6 330.00–335.00 $330.81 $2,408 -0.19
757 757 2 327.00 $327.00 $2,475 —
801 801 4 306.00 $306.00 $2,451 —
899 value added 899 60 322.25 $322.25 $2,897 —
1095 1095 2 258.00 $258.00 $2,825 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
425–445 435 2 327.00–370.00 $348.99 $1,518 +21.99
496 496 3 374.00 $374.00 $1,855 +10.72
500–545 526 8 335.00–370.00 $359.22 $1,889 +22.22
550–595 572 5 335.00–351.00 $345.93 $1,979 —
640 640 1 327.00 $327.00 $2,093 -3.00
855 855 1 280.00 $280.00 $2,394 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
667 667 4 337.00 $337.00 $2,248 +5.32
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
645 645 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,935 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240–245 243 3 405.00–432.50 $423.46 $1,029 +13.46
362–375 369 4 397.00–405.00 $401.07 $1,480 +28.74
400–415 408 6 387.00–397.00 $391.91 $1,599 —
426 fancy 426 7 409.00 $409.00 $1,742 —
460–498 472 11 367.00–383.00 $375.37 $1,772 +12.06
506–537 526 17 359.00–375.00 $364.68 $1,918 +26.30
555–575 558 16 333.00–350.00 $346.16 $1,932 +24.99
603–646 621 7 307.00–309.00 $308.11 $1,913 +1.27
650 650 2 255.00 $255.00 $1,658 —
688 688 3 300.00 $300.00 $2,064 —
700 700 2 308.00 $308.00 $2,156 —
706–739 value added 732 76 312.50–319.00 $313.82 $2,297 —
758–795 765 8 275.00–287.50 $280.64 $2,147 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
347 347 2 385.00 $385.00 $1,336 +47.31
420–440 430 3 365.00–380.00 $370.85 $1,595 +36.05
455–490 479 5 335.00–350.00 $344.52 $1,650 +15.00
510–545 533 4 335.00–345.00 $337.97 $1,801 +21.16
565–592 581 14 299.00–322.00 $312.68 $1,817 +12.43
605–615 613 5 235.00–280.00 $271.12 $1,662 -16.32
695 695 1 270.00 $270.00 $1,876 —
800 800 1 222.00 $222.00 $1,776 -13.00
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,698 —
595 595 1 277.00 $277.00 $1,648 —
660 660 1 260.00 $260.00 $1,716 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
212 212 2 460.00 $460.00 $975 —
330–341 339 6 430.00–447.00 $444.24 $1,506 +19.24
350 350 3 430.00 $430.00 $1,505 +10.83
423 fancy 423 5 437.00 $437.00 $1,849 —
420–440 426 4 402.00–421.00 $411.83 $1,754 +44.41
485 485 1 364.00 $364.00 $1,765 -7.31
510–525 fancy 521 4 380.00–387.00 $382.25 $1,992 —
510–540 530 4 355.00–376.00 $363.34 $1,926 +7.48
550–587 576 5 330.00–335.00 $334.01 $1,924 -16.99
620 620 2 324.00 $324.00 $2,009 -6.17
655 655 1 308.00 $308.00 $2,017 -16.00
802 802 2 285.00 $285.00 $2,286 +20.00
865–880 873 2 245.00–255.00 $249.96 $2,182 —
950 950 1 223.00 $223.00 $2,118 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260 260 1 420.00 $420.00 $1,092 —
375 375 1 399.00 $399.00 $1,496 +29.11
410–445 428 2 375.00–380.00 $377.60 $1,616 —
495 495 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,609 +5.00
810 810 1 269.00 $269.00 $2,179 +17.00

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1195–1535 1424 75-80% 28 164.00–184.00 $168.17 $2,395 —
1440–1850 1678 75-80% 5 155.50–162.00 $157.50 $2,643 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
815 815 85-90% 1 119.00 $119.00 $970 —
920–1130 1023 85-90% 10 138.50–146.00 $142.44 $1,457 —
1195 1195 85-90% 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,792 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1080–1105 1093 80-85% 2 165.00–166.00 $165.51 $1,809 —
1145–1375 1232 80-85% 6 140.00–147.00 $145.16 $1,788 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1460–1575 1510 3 189.00–193.00 $190.64 $2,879 —
1575 1575 1 180.00 $180.00 $2,835 —
1240–1920 1674 7 200.00–215.00 $208.56 $3,491 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
995 995 (<2 yrs)Open 1 2,125.00 $2,125.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
836–1050 922 (<2 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 5 2,000.00–2,050.00 $2,027.21
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
845 845 (<2 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,025.00 $2,025.00

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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.