Cattle Market Pulse

Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, April 27, 2023

4,720 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $252.49/cwt +33.99 vs last sale · ≈ $1,581/hd at 626 lb · 424 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $235.21/cwt +28.91 vs last sale · ≈ $1,571/hd at 668 lb · 356 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $220.47/cwt +21.47 vs last sale · ≈ $1,592/hd at 722 lb · 243 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 4,720 1,151 3,443
Feeder cattle 4,649 229 3,118
Slaughter cattle — 577 —
Replacement cattle 71 345 325

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
374 374 5 275.00 $275.00 $1,028 -50.00
429–442 435 22 275.00–295.00 $283.90 $1,235 -31.10
468–496 488 95 265.00–297.50 $292.00 $1,425 +2.52
501–545 533 75 271.00–290.00 $277.23 $1,478 -5.27
550–588 559 236 266.00–295.00 $282.55 $1,579 +14.21
600–649 631 175 245.00–297.50 $265.49 $1,675 +12.01
650–697 680 88 235.00–265.00 $247.44 $1,683 +19.44
704–745 722 151 210.00–248.00 $240.87 $1,739 +23.87
754–782 773 201 198.00–219.00 $208.40 $1,611 —
807–818 812 70 196.00–204.00 $201.95 $1,640 —
855–871 869 26 178.00–194.00 $189.94 $1,651 —
916–931 920 35 183.00–196.00 $187.74 $1,727 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–390 373 6 215.00–225.00 $219.77 $820 -75.23
426–442 433 11 245.00–247.50 $246.34 $1,067 -26.89
510 510 2 254.00 $254.00 $1,295 -10.17
581–583 582 8 245.00–265.00 $252.52 $1,470 +17.52
625–638 632 6 245.00 $245.00 $1,548 —
672–696 684 34 210.00–228.00 $221.47 $1,515 —
700–729 715 40 210.00–217.50 $215.43 $1,540 —
774–778 775 61 205.00–219.50 $213.75 $1,657 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
568 568 2 274.00 $274.00 $1,556 —
621–646 638 42 224.00–241.00 $235.88 $1,505 —
710–738 718 33 219.00–221.00 $220.44 $1,583 —
758 758 11 199.00 $199.00 $1,508 —
825 825 4 191.00 $191.00 $1,576 —
896 896 5 189.00 $189.00 $1,693 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
672–684 676 11 205.00–226.00 $218.28 $1,476 —
743 743 22 230.00 $230.00 $1,709 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
600 600 2 175.00 $175.00 $1,050 —
750 750 4 174.00 $174.00 $1,305 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
374–398 387 118 220.00–251.00 $234.82 $909 —
413–433 421 27 247.50–269.00 $258.38 $1,088 —
470–491 483 63 242.00–274.00 $261.01 $1,261 —
500–541 521 46 240.00–262.00 $250.21 $1,304 -7.20
550–599 576 229 234.00–271.00 $255.69 $1,473 +19.55
600–643 626 424 220.00–260.00 $252.49 $1,581 +33.99
651–694 668 356 225.50–246.00 $235.21 $1,571 +28.91
701–739 722 243 201.00–234.00 $220.47 $1,592 +21.47
751–769 765 42 199.00–208.00 $206.77 $1,582 +16.77
805–836 817 79 181.00–203.00 $196.06 $1,602 —
858–878 866 10 175.00–189.00 $180.68 $1,565 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
369 369 4 230.00 $230.00 $849 —
403–430 407 31 221.50–238.00 $224.31 $913 —
561 561 13 241.00 $241.00 $1,352 —
698 698 14 215.00 $215.00 $1,501 —
908 908 29 175.50 $175.50 $1,594 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
408–426 416 15 202.50–220.00 $211.65 $880 -43.35
500–525 513 4 220.00–230.00 $225.12 $1,155 -6.92
577 577 3 207.50 $207.50 $1,197 —
633 633 12 191.00 $191.00 $1,209 -21.00
654–694 674 15 192.50–213.00 $205.19 $1,383 —
785 785 7 193.00 $193.00 $1,515 —
Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
683 683 6 173.00 $173.00 $1,182 —
794 794 31 174.50 $174.50 $1,386 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
548 548 2 228.00 $228.00 $1,249 —
616 616 5 229.00 $229.00 $1,411 —
730–738 732 26 192.00–214.00 $208.88 $1,529 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 2 195.00 $195.00 $673 —
542 542 3 200.00 $200.00 $1,084 —
655–673 664 4 221.00–232.50 $226.67 $1,505 —
837 837 13 180.50 $180.50 $1,511 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300 300 1 205.00 $205.00 $615 —
482 482 3 230.00 $230.00 $1,109 —
543 543 2 190.00 $190.00 $1,032 —
785 785 3 185.00 $185.00 $1,452 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
423 423 2 255.00 $255.00 $1,079 —
499 499 11 255.00 $255.00 $1,272 —
507 507 11 267.00 $267.00 $1,354 —
569 569 29 237.50 $237.50 $1,351 —
608 608 14 245.00 $245.00 $1,490 +9.00
753 753 4 191.00 $191.00 $1,438 +3.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
360 360 2 170.00 $170.00 $612 —
860 860 3 172.00 $172.00 $1,479 —
919 919 9 170.00 $170.00 $1,562 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1185 1185 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 3 1,550.00 $1,550.00
900–1705 1189 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 11 1,650.00–2,225.00 $2,102.60
1348–1488 1448 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 7 1,700.00–1,950.00 $1,883.50
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
875 875 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 5 1,450.00 $1,450.00
1343 1343 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 4 2,125.00 $2,125.00
1343 1343 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,250.00 $1,250.00
1473 1473 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 1,300.00 $1,300.00
1493 1493 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 1,525.00 $1,525.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
930–1098 948 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 19 1,900.00–1,925.00 $1,921.95
1115 1115 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,350.00 $1,350.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1355–1517 1497 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 8 1,600.00 $1,600.00 —
1674 1674 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 8 2,300.00 $2,300.00 —

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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.