Cattle Market Pulse

Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, February 17, 2022

940 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction report →

light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $216.41/cwt +11.75 vs last sale · ≈ $1,112/hd at 514 lb · 46 head
light 4-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $184.50/cwt +4.13 vs last sale · ≈ $810/hd at 439 lb · 33 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $196.76/cwt +7.64 vs last sale · ≈ $907/hd at 461 lb · 26 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 940 4,095 1,499
Feeder cattle 359 3,451 754
Slaughter cattle 293 423 455
Replacement cattle 288 221 290

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeders were not well tested. Trade was active, demand good on light offerings. Slaughter cows steady. Slaughter bulls mostly steady on a light test.

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
451–470 456 15 209.00–215.00 $213.35 $973 -7.19
503–535 514 46 204.00–217.00 $216.41 $1,112 +11.75
558 558 14 207.00 $207.00 $1,155 +13.71
610–635 620 5 183.00–186.00 $184.77 $1,146 +0.61
715 715 2 155.00 $155.00 $1,108 -14.96
776 776 17 153.00 $153.00 $1,187 -15.29
817 817 3 148.00 $148.00 $1,209 -11.93
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
292 292 3 205.00 $205.00 $599 —
365–398 380 6 195.00–210.00 $204.76 $778 -5.24
465–490 486 9 199.00–205.00 $199.99 $972 -6.01
543 543 2 187.00 $187.00 $1,015 -2.96
600 600 2 176.00 $176.00 $1,056 +2.00
658–689 677 15 157.00–167.00 $160.89 $1,089 -4.85
Small 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
532 532 7 160.00 $160.00 $851 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
433 433 2 187.50 $187.50 $812 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 340 4 181.00 $181.00 $615 —
387 387 3 183.00 $183.00 $708 —
417–442 439 33 180.00–185.00 $184.50 $810 +4.13
470–478 475 3 158.00–162.00 $160.68 $763 -13.92
595 595 1 162.00 $162.00 $964 —
617 617 3 157.00 $157.00 $969 +8.54
650–684 672 10 149.00–161.00 $154.82 $1,040 +6.82
801–820 807 6 122.00–131.00 $125.05 $1,009 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
453–462 461 26 191.00–197.50 $196.76 $907 +7.64
513–525 520 9 174.00–187.00 $178.94 $930 +2.99
579 579 10 180.00 $180.00 $1,042 +7.47
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405 405 3 150.00 $150.00 $608 —
514–528 519 6 145.00–149.00 $147.64 $766 —
606 606 8 131.00 $131.00 $794 —
718 718 2 120.00 $120.00 $862 —
845 845 2 112.50 $112.50 $951 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–345 333 3 160.00–172.50 $163.88 $546 —
378–398 388 4 142.50–145.00 $143.78 $558 —
428 428 2 167.50 $167.50 $717 +9.50
473 473 3 147.50 $147.50 $698 +2.50

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
453 453 3 202.00 $202.00 $915 —
1023 1023 2 120.00 $120.00 $1,228 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200 1200 80-85% 1 76.00 $76.00 $912 —
1062–1525 1212 80-85% 7 65.00–67.00 $66.27 $803 —
1035–1770 1279 80-85% 146 67.00–75.50 $70.11 $897 —
1140–1515 1281 80-85% 73 67.00–77.00 $68.86 $882 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
815–1000 930 85-90% 3 50.00–54.00 $52.24 $486 -4.43
930–1288 1072 85-90% 12 57.00–64.00 $61.31 $657 +8.18
1020–1218 1123 85-90% 15 66.00–67.00 $66.06 $742 +3.36
1010–1550 1215 85-90% 103 65.00–68.00 $65.68 $798 -5.95
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
173–1573 1223 75-80% 4 74.00–75.50 $74.05 $906 —
1235–1470 1298 75-80% 5 65.00–69.00 $67.51 $876 —
1435–1440 1436 75-80% 4 73.00–75.00 $73.50 $1,055 —
1335–1535 1471 75-80% 31 68.50–72.00 $71.40 $1,050 —
1525 1525 75-80% 3 77.50 $77.50 $1,182 +2.00

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1170–1480 1325 2 83.00–92.00 $88.03 $1,166 —
1600–1980 1853 3 91.00–98.00 $93.01 $1,723 —
1690–2365 2134 6 106.00–110.00 $107.25 $2,289 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
765–1234 1049 (<2 yrs)Open 58 81.00–124.00 $99.74 $1,046
965–1398 1201 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 21 65.00–88.00 $70.25 $844

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1035–1130 1054 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 5 900.00–950.00 $939.28
1257 1257 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 860.00 $860.00
1213–1538 1454 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 30 1,250.00–1,500.00 $1,461.84
1405–1593 1530 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 31 1,010.00–1,075.00 $1,065.83
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1175 1175 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 1,125.00 $1,125.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
845 845 (<2 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 950.00 $950.00
892 892 (<2 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 900.00 $900.00

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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.