Cattle Market Pulse

Ash Flat Livestock Auction Market Report

Ash Flat, Arkansas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, March 3, 2023

280 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Ash Flat Livestock Auction report →

light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $209.44/cwt +28.21 vs last sale · ≈ $882/hd at 421 lb · 14 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 280 767 1,849
Feeder cattle 230 608 1,572
Slaughter cattle 45 149 277
Replacement cattle 5 10 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeders on a very light supply due to extreme rainfall and flash flooding were trading very strong. Steers were mostly 10.00 to 15.00 higher. Heifers traded 15.00 to 20.00 higher and in some instances 25.00 higher. Slaughter cows traded 2.00 to 6.00 higher and slaughter bulls were steady to 2.00 higher. Suppy was very light, demand was strong, and quality was good.

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
260–283 277 4 250.00–265.00 $261.48 $724 —
315 315 1 250.00 $250.00 $788 +30.25
375–385 380 2 230.00–237.00 $233.55 $887 +8.68
410–440 424 6 222.50–242.50 $235.41 $998 +11.15
460 460 1 205.00 $205.00 $943 +15.00
565 565 1 174.00 $174.00 $983 +14.00
565–590 578 2 187.50–204.00 $195.57 $1,130 +35.57
660 660 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,320 +19.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 180.00 $180.00 $711 —
465–485 476 4 180.00–185.00 $182.15 $867 +15.45

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270 270 2 215.00 $215.00 $580 —
315 315 1 212.50 $212.50 $669 +22.50
365–383 375 4 185.00–215.00 $207.70 $779 +23.16
410–445 421 14 185.00–222.50 $209.44 $882 +25.21
460–467 465 5 192.50–209.00 $203.94 $948 +48.94
495 495 1 169.00 $169.00 $837 -9.03
500–545 516 5 180.00–197.50 $187.67 $968 +14.21
555–560 558 2 155.00–175.00 $164.96 $920 -1.27
580 580 1 195.00 $195.00 $1,131 +38.81
600 600 1 177.50 $177.50 $1,065 +12.40
655 655 1 177.50 $177.50 $1,163 +22.54
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 1 180.00 $180.00 $495 +3.00
305–320 312 3 165.00–192.50 $180.47 $563 +20.47
380 380 1 170.00 $170.00 $646 +9.64
410–415 412 3 157.50–185.00 $172.55 $711 +15.01
460 460 1 165.00 $165.00 $759 +21.04
560 thin fleshed 560 1 164.00 $164.00 $918 —
580 580 1 157.50 $157.50 $914 +2.50
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
415–445 430 2 122.50–131.00 $126.90 $546 +6.90
530–540 538 4 130.00–131.00 $130.25 $701 +2.25

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
276–295 280 5 250.00–270.00 $265.78 $744 —
335 335 2 251.00 $251.00 $841 +25.26
355–382 371 5 246.00–252.50 $250.01 $928 +27.77
405–445 425 2 195.00–225.00 $209.29 $889 +0.22
455–470 465 3 200.00–210.00 $206.74 $961 +18.25
505–540 531 4 200.00 $200.00 $1,062 +4.29
553 553 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,106 +16.63
630 630 1 184.00 $184.00 $1,159 +14.66
670 670 1 184.00 $184.00 $1,233 —
710 710 1 176.00 $176.00 $1,250 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290 290 1 180.00 $180.00 $522 —
430 thin fleshed 430 1 235.00 $235.00 $1,010 —
500–540 thin fleshed 525 5 180.00–192.50 $186.94 $981 —
580 thin fleshed 580 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,044 —
770 770 1 131.00 $131.00 $1,009 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
435 435 1 150.00 $150.00 $652 —
470 470 1 150.00 $150.00 $705 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
860–890 873 85-90% 3 66.00–75.00 $70.01 $611 +20.01
915–1275 1059 85-90% 10 84.00–95.00 $90.24 $956 +16.70
1090 1090 85-90% 1 40.00 $40.00 $436 -43.87
1125 1125 85-90% 1 79.00 $79.00 $889 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1010–1333 1134 80-85% 11 89.00–96.00 $93.44 $1,060 —
1545 1545 80-85% 1 84.00 $84.00 $1,298 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1090 1090 75-80% 1 87.00 $87.00 $948 —
1305–1785 1545 75-80% 2 97.00–98.00 $97.42 $1,505 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1025–2065 1616 4 110.00–119.50 $114.41 $1,849 —
1605–1770 1688 2 96.00–106.00 $100.76 $1,701 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1195–1280 1238 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 2 95.00–100.00 $97.59 $1,208
1250 1250 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 1 100.00 $100.00 $1,250
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1000 1000 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 1 1,125.00 $1,125.00

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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.