Cattle Market Pulse

Arab Livestock Market Report

Arab, Alabama · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, December 19, 2023

438 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Arab Livestock Market report →

light 5-weight M&L 2 heifers $208.62/cwt +1.80 vs last sale · ≈ $1,089/hd at 522 lb · 16 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $216.21/cwt +3.21 vs last sale · ≈ $1,172/hd at 542 lb · 12 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 438 602 770
Feeder cattle 318 481 673
Slaughter cattle 89 79 83
Replacement cattle 31 42 14

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to one week ago: Slaughter cattle sold steady to 3.00 higher with high yielding boning cows up to 106.00 cwt. Feeder steers sold 3.00 to 10.00 higher, feeder heifers sold 1.00 to 5.00 higher, feeder bulls sold sharply higher. Trade active with very good demand on feeder cattle. Replacement cattle sold steady.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350–355 353 3 282.00–287.00 $284.66 $1,005 +7.66
415–440 423 4 272.00–280.00 $276.01 $1,168 +11.99
455–465 460 2 262.00–268.00 $265.03 $1,219 +10.02
533–535 534 4 251.00–255.00 $252.00 $1,346 +6.20
560–585 578 9 240.00–245.00 $241.89 $1,398 +5.92
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 340 1 282.00 $282.00 $959 +12.00
350 350 1 275.00 $275.00 $962 +10.00
410–420 415 2 262.00–270.00 $265.95 $1,104 +10.95
510 510 1 247.00 $247.00 $1,260 +15.00
555 555 1 236.00 $236.00 $1,310 +12.01
625–630 628 2 227.00 $227.00 $1,426 +17.00
705 705 1 194.00 $194.00 $1,368 —
795 795 1 187.00 $187.00 $1,487 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340–345 343 2 270.00 $270.00 $926 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
265–290 280 4 250.00–255.00 $252.54 $707 —
355–390 373 3 230.00–237.00 $234.56 $875 -2.19
410–445 435 8 222.00–230.00 $225.52 $981 -2.07
455–495 479 5 213.00–220.00 $216.57 $1,037 +2.07
500–540 522 16 205.00–212.00 $208.62 $1,089 +1.80
760 760 2 150.00–160.00 $155.00 $1,178 -2.00
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315–345 327 3 250.00–255.00 $251.63 $823 +1.63
360–365 363 2 242.00–245.00 $243.49 $884 -3.17
400–425 411 8 235.00–240.00 $237.09 $974 -2.89
490 490 1 222.00 $222.00 $1,088 -6.30
515–547 542 12 213.00–218.00 $216.21 $1,172 +3.21
550–580 570 4 209.00–213.00 $211.47 $1,205 +1.47
600–640 613 3 199.00–208.00 $204.87 $1,256 +11.79
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275–285 280 2 245.00 $245.00 $686 +8.25
320–325 323 2 230.00–235.00 $232.52 $751 -2.48
425–445 435 2 220.00 $220.00 $957 +3.25
465–495 480 2 210.00 $210.00 $1,008 +1.99
530 530 2 190.00–200.00 $195.00 $1,034 -1.12
600–610 605 2 175.00–180.00 $177.48 $1,074 +5.14
705 705 1 155.00 $155.00 $1,093 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330–345 335 4 282.00–287.00 $283.29 $949 +13.29
375–395 382 3 270.00–277.00 $273.93 $1,046 +6.93
410–445 428 5 260.00–268.00 $264.48 $1,132 +8.38
455–495 476 9 250.00–262.00 $254.81 $1,213 +14.17
510–535 522 5 240.00–245.00 $243.82 $1,273 +10.34
555–585 571 4 233.00–236.00 $234.23 $1,337 +9.23
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275–280 278 2 277.00–280.00 $278.49 $774 +8.35
330–345 338 4 270.00–277.00 $272.96 $923 +12.02
355–390 372 3 260.00–262.00 $261.34 $972 +6.34
400–435 418 5 250.00–257.00 $253.83 $1,061 +10.67
495 495 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,213 +15.70
520–525 523 2 232.00–237.00 $234.49 $1,226 +12.32
555–570 563 2 222.00–225.00 $223.52 $1,258 +14.92
615 615 1 216.00 $216.00 $1,328 +20.03
650 650 1 201.00 $201.00 $1,306 +12.73
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–335 323 2 267.00 $267.00 $862 +17.00
355 355 1 255.00 $255.00 $905 +14.03
410–445 430 4 245.00–247.00 $245.98 $1,058 +15.14
470–485 477 3 230.00–235.00 $232.32 $1,108 +11.05
540 540 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,188 +3.99
585 585 1 217.00 $217.00 $1,269 +18.79
620 620 1 205.00 $205.00 $1,271 —
660 660 1 197.00 $197.00 $1,300 +25.99

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
950–1430 1116 80-85% 14 90.00–96.00 $92.05 $1,027 —
1020–1415 1207 80-85% 9 97.00–103.00 $99.37 $1,199 +8.66
930–1875 1222 80-85% 19 84.00–89.00 $86.72 $1,060 -3.99
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
840–880 858 85-90% 3 69.00–70.00 $69.33 $595 —
840–1075 927 85-90% 9 74.00–78.00 $75.97 $704 +3.11
785–1315 985 85-90% 10 79.00–84.00 $81.80 $806 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1120 1120 75-80% 1 89.00 $89.00 $997 —
1265–1745 1547 75-80% 5 90.00–95.00 $92.30 $1,428 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1155–1435 1319 4 100.00–105.00 $102.87 $1,357 —
1810 1810 1 115.00 $115.00 $2,082 +11.31
1830 1830 1 112.00 $112.00 $2,050 +8.31

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 5 1,050.00–1,300.00 $1,165.00
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 5 1,300.00–1,450.00 $1,375.00
Medium and Large 3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 4 875.00–1,025.00 $950.00
— — Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,100.00 $1,100.00

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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
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,525.00–1,600.00 $1,562.50 —
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,200.00–1,250.00 $1,225.00 —

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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.