Cattle Market Pulse

Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, February 16, 2023

701 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $178.10/cwt -6.46 vs last sale · ≈ $1,467/hd at 823 lb · 77 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $193.44/cwt -8.06 vs last sale · ≈ $1,339/hd at 692 lb · 31 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 steers $190.86/cwt +0.25 vs last sale · ≈ $1,369/hd at 717 lb · 21 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 701 3,411 940
Feeder cattle 375 3,091 359
Slaughter cattle 201 219 293
Replacement cattle 125 101 288

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Steer calves were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however steady undertones were noticed. Heifer calves were not well compared. Demand was mostly moderate to good for light offerings. Quality today was mostly plain to average and lower than last weeks attractive offering. Most calves were offered in small packages or as singles. Both quality was the biggest limiting factor affecting demand today. Market activity was mostly moderate today, with fewer market participants seen. Weigh up cows sold on mostly good to very good demand for mostly light offerings. Packers showed mostly very good demand for cows for immediate harvest. Slaughter cows sold mostly 4.00-7.00 higher on all offerings. Feeding cows were too lightly tested to develop any market trend, as most cows sold to slaughter buyers. Slaughter bulls sold 5.00-6.00 higher in a narrow comparison. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Many young cow offerings continue to be sold to slaughter buyers as the cow market took another large jump higher.

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
525–533 528 6 226.00–230.00 $227.35 $1,200 -14.89
585 585 2 219.00 $219.00 $1,281 -1.28
627 627 6 215.00 $215.00 $1,348 +4.82
690 690 14 197.00 $197.00 $1,359 +9.00
680–698 694 17 189.00–195.50 $190.50 $1,322 +2.50
705–710 708 16 193.00–195.00 $194.25 $1,375 +3.64
747 747 5 180.00 $180.00 $1,345 -10.61
811–836 815 48 178.00–182.25 $181.61 $1,480 -2.95
832 832 6 160.00 $160.00 $1,331 -24.56
839 839 23 175.50 $175.50 $1,472 -9.06
959 959 8 158.00 $158.00 $1,515 -10.61
973 973 3 154.00 $154.00 $1,498 -14.61
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
503 503 9 226.00 $226.00 $1,137 —
556 556 10 212.00 $212.00 $1,179 —
754 754 7 185.00 $185.00 $1,395 —
1030 1030 4 158.00 $158.00 $1,627 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
478 478 4 234.00 $234.00 $1,119 -0.71
653–655 654 10 187.00–192.00 $190.50 $1,246 +1.14
774 774 6 165.00 $165.00 $1,277 -8.00
840 840 3 163.00 $163.00 $1,369 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
438 438 2 220.00 $220.00 $964 —
791 791 5 152.00 $152.00 $1,202 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
532 532 7 204.00 $204.00 $1,085 -11.65
552 552 3 191.00 $191.00 $1,054 -15.59
725 725 12 170.00 $170.00 $1,232 +1.50
833 833 2 150.00 $150.00 $1,250 -24.16
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
419 419 4 208.00 $208.00 $872 -2.00
470–480 477 6 197.50–200.00 $199.18 $950 +1.54
664 664 7 172.00 $172.00 $1,142 -3.36
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
417 417 3 195.00 $195.00 $813 —
498 498 12 193.00 $193.00 $961 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405 405 3 192.50 $192.50 $780 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
555 555 2 192.00 $192.00 $1,066 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
578 578 3 195.00 $195.00 $1,127 —
618 618 3 198.00 $198.00 $1,224 —
740 740 6 172.00 $172.00 $1,273 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1000 1000 80-85% 1 67.00 $67.00 $670 —
1230–1390 1337 80-85% 14 79.00–84.00 $82.64 $1,105 -0.25
1245–1670 1377 80-85% 48 84.00–92.00 $89.03 $1,226 +11.03
1385 1385 80-85% 1 87.00 $87.00 $1,205 +2.20
1300–1475 1399 80-85% 7 93.00–97.00 $95.16 $1,331 +10.36
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
865–885 875 85-90% 2 73.00–77.50 $75.22 $658 —
875–925 900 85-90% 2 83.00–85.00 $84.03 $756 —
1085–1155 1120 85-90% 2 65.00–68.00 $66.45 $744 —
1070–1260 1149 85-90% 27 74.00–82.50 $79.09 $909 —
1175–1250 1199 85-90% 8 90.00–94.00 $91.02 $1,091 +17.31
1040–1268 1202 85-90% 21 82.50–89.00 $86.16 $1,036 +6.52
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1548 1548 75-80% 4 96.00 $96.00 $1,486 —
1451–1790 1555 75-80% 43 89.00–94.00 $91.69 $1,426 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1150 1150 1 107.00 $107.00 $1,230 —
1435–1825 1680 5 96.00–103.00 $100.44 $1,687 +1.12
1805 1805 2 115.25 $115.25 $2,080 —
1625–2050 1903 4 104.00–112.00 $108.14 $2,058 —
YG2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
2255 2255 1 106.00 $106.00 $2,390 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
845–1555 1054 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 46 87.00–123.50 $107.00 $1,128
910–1200 1070 (<2 yrs)Open 3 116.00–132.00 $122.25 $1,308
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
755–940 866 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 5 78.00–110.00 $93.17 $807

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1337–1413 1378 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 39 1,285.00–1,325.00 $1,306.91
1231–1467 1388 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 27 1,250.00–1,350.00 $1,315.98

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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.