Cattle Market Pulse

Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, September 28, 2023

2,781 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $252.92/cwt ≈ $1,844/hd at 729 lb · 119 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $250.44/cwt +6.13 vs last sale · ≈ $1,960/hd at 783 lb · 113 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1 heifers $230.80/cwt +1.80 vs last sale · ≈ $2,020/hd at 875 lb · 88 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,781 585 3,783
Feeder cattle 2,312 242 3,783
Slaughter cattle 347 273 0
Replacement cattle 122 70 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Receipts were too light last week to make any market comparisons on calves or yearlings. Demand for all feeder offerings was mostly moderate to good. Quality this week was mixed. Load lots sold on very good demand along with large packages. Small packages and singles sold with lighter demand this week. Most calves were offered in small packages this sale. Several sets of home raised yearlings were seen this week. CME positions rebounded slightly today after being down sharply earlier in the week. The October traded 2.475 higher and the November 2.875 higher to close at 254.725 and 257.675 respectfully. Demand for light weight yearlings is very good as buyers look to late spring to market these as fed cattle. Market activity was mostly active this week. Weigh up cows sold on mostly moderate to good demand for light offerings. Packers showed very good demand for feeding cows again today. Feeding cows sold mostly steady to firm. Slaughter cows sold generally steady on all offerings. Cow quality today was mixed from plain to attractive. Slaughter bulls sold generally steady in a narrow comparison. Weigh up conditions were mixed with some cows and bulls offering buyers good weigh conditions, while others were pushing fill. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold on very good demand today as rebreed buyers and feeding buyers both competed over offerings. Young age cows were too lightly tested last week to develop any market trend. Quality this week was mostly average to attractive.

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
325 unweaned 325 10 351.00 $351.00 $1,141 —
410–446 unweaned 421 24 325.00–335.00 $328.09 $1,381 —
473–495 unweaned 478 41 298.00–327.00 $319.40 $1,527 —
508–529 unweaned 519 27 294.00–306.00 $298.76 $1,551 —
550–575 unweaned 565 22 276.00–289.00 $284.86 $1,609 —
589 thin fleshed 589 44 281.00 $281.00 $1,655 —
625 625 5 276.00 $276.00 $1,725 —
601–648 unweaned 633 43 254.00–277.00 $267.40 $1,693 —
658 658 23 278.00 $278.00 $1,829 —
683 unweaned 683 6 265.00 $265.00 $1,810 —
705–721 710 54 273.00–275.00 $273.68 $1,943 -1.32
760–785 770 72 259.50–268.00 $265.76 $2,046 +2.76
804–811 806 77 250.00–257.00 $252.22 $2,033 -0.78
858–890 876 27 237.00–247.00 $240.68 $2,108 -5.82
900–925 909 29 238.00–239.00 $238.48 $2,168 —
983 983 2 233.00 $233.00 $2,290 -8.00
1068 1068 4 221.00 $221.00 $2,360 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
379 unweaned 379 19 332.00 $332.00 $1,258 —
434 unweaned 434 22 316.50 $316.50 $1,374 —
460–483 unweaned 477 8 282.50–297.50 $293.89 $1,402 —
523–542 unweaned 537 30 262.50–290.00 $278.02 $1,493 —
590 unweaned 590 1 266.00 $266.00 $1,569 —
655 unweaned 655 3 239.00 $239.00 $1,565 —
726–749 734 12 255.50–258.00 $256.35 $1,882 -1.65
755–790 781 38 248.00–253.00 $252.17 $1,969 +4.67
813–848 832 23 239.00–249.50 $245.75 $2,045 +3.25
914 914 11 232.00 $232.00 $2,120 -1.00
1065 1065 2 218.50 $218.50 $2,327 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
548 thin fleshed 548 13 277.00 $277.00 $1,518 —
563–572 570 14 267.50–282.50 $270.67 $1,543 —
615–634 630 23 260.00–276.00 $269.75 $1,699 —
678 678 6 255.00 $255.00 $1,729 —
749 749 6 259.00 $259.00 $1,940 —
753 753 8 240.00 $240.00 $1,807 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
647 647 10 241.00 $241.00 $1,559 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
741 741 4 243.50 $243.50 $1,804 —
778 778 4 237.00 $237.00 $1,844 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
552 unweaned 552 3 240.00 $240.00 $1,325 —
1143 1143 2 205.00 $205.00 $2,343 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 unweaned 305 1 320.00 $320.00 $976 —
377 unweaned 377 6 300.00 $300.00 $1,131 —
405–421 unweaned 410 30 275.00–300.00 $281.75 $1,155 —
455–495 unweaned 483 26 282.00–286.00 $284.84 $1,376 —
500–535 unweaned 518 41 259.00–272.00 $264.56 $1,370 —
554–588 unweaned 576 20 250.00–258.00 $254.71 $1,467 —
600–638 unweaned 621 17 245.00–257.00 $247.83 $1,539 —
673 unweaned 673 4 242.50 $242.50 $1,632 —
686 thin fleshed 686 40 269.50 $269.50 $1,849 —
701–741 729 119 249.50–260.00 $252.92 $1,844 —
760 thin fleshed 760 18 258.50 $258.50 $1,965 —
750–790 787 95 238.50–253.00 $248.91 $1,959 +4.60
821–830 828 22 233.50–235.00 $234.73 $1,944 —
866–892 875 88 223.50–232.50 $230.80 $2,020 +1.80
900–944 921 86 220.50–226.00 $224.29 $2,066 —
965–998 975 28 217.00–222.50 $220.12 $2,146 +3.07
1003–1040 1024 35 216.50–219.50 $218.30 $2,235 +8.80
1050 1050 4 212.50 $212.50 $2,231 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
323 unweaned 323 3 300.00 $300.00 $969 —
353–394 unweaned 387 25 246.00–262.00 $259.67 $1,005 —
433 unweaned 433 4 262.00 $262.00 $1,134 —
471–478 unweaned 473 13 240.00 $240.00 $1,135 —
523 unweaned 523 12 244.00 $244.00 $1,276 —
550 unweaned 550 4 232.00 $232.00 $1,276 —
700–749 741 39 242.50–245.00 $243.89 $1,807 +3.15
787–798 793 39 225.00–238.00 $229.17 $1,817 -1.65
801–828 803 36 227.00–232.00 $227.29 $1,825 +0.79
860–890 884 15 224.00–226.00 $224.39 $1,984 +1.67
919 919 17 219.00 $219.00 $2,013 +2.66
995 995 2 216.00 $216.00 $2,149 +4.55
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
623 623 4 251.00 $251.00 $1,564 —
665 665 2 263.00 $263.00 $1,749 —
756 756 28 240.00 $240.00 $1,814 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
573 unweaned 573 3 245.00 $245.00 $1,404 —
843 843 10 225.00 $225.00 $1,897 —
883–887 886 14 225.00–228.50 $226.00 $2,002 —
1150–1158 1155 4 193.00–196.00 $194.88 $2,251 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
272 unweaned 272 13 251.00 $251.00 $683 —
336 unweaned 336 9 252.00 $252.00 $847 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
650–690 678 20 239.00–247.00 $241.30 $1,636 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
251 unweaned 251 14 262.50 $262.50 $659 —
367 unweaned 367 13 292.50 $292.50 $1,073 —
430 unweaned 430 10 250.00 $250.00 $1,075 —
925 925 1 211.00 $211.00 $1,952 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
653 unweaned 653 3 225.00 $225.00 $1,469 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1301–1598 1350 80-85% 28 93.00–99.50 $95.68 $1,292 —
1360–1405 1383 80-85% 2 92.00–97.00 $94.54 $1,307 —
1345–1470 1408 80-85% 4 100.50–108.00 $104.08 $1,465 —
1313–1545 1410 80-85% 48 100.00–114.00 $104.10 $1,468 —
1402–1635 1452 80-85% 11 113.00–118.00 $115.83 $1,682 +3.04
1490 1490 80-85% 1 114.00 $114.00 $1,699 +1.21
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
895 895 85-90% 1 67.00 $67.00 $600 —
873–990 898 85-90% 8 80.00–88.00 $84.02 $754 —
815–1158 1079 85-90% 7 92.50–96.00 $93.87 $1,013 —
1018–1340 1131 85-90% 26 77.00–96.50 $92.13 $1,042 +1.37
965–1269 1218 85-90% 6 99.00–102.00 $101.60 $1,237 +20.60
1208–1335 1275 85-90% 24 97.50–102.50 $98.84 $1,260 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1628–1630 1629 75-80% 3 114.00–116.00 $115.33 $1,879 +3.33
1640–1800 1720 75-80% 2 115.50–116.00 $115.74 $1,991 +6.93
1786 1786 75-80% 4 107.00 $107.00 $1,911 —
1820 1820 75-80% 4 105.00 $105.00 $1,911 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200 1200 1 87.00 $87.00 $1,044 —
1235–1800 1546 13 103.50–111.00 $108.97 $1,685 —
1440–1753 1602 13 113.00–119.00 $115.36 $1,848 —
1345–1898 1675 8 105.00–110.00 $108.02 $1,809 —
1610–2365 1865 26 111.00–121.00 $114.51 $2,136 —
1955–2080 2018 2 123.50–126.00 $124.71 $2,517 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
880–995 thin fleshed 915 (<2 yrs)Open 4 146.00–160.00 $154.96 $1,418
885–1240 1025 (<2 yrs)Open 59 109.00–182.00 $158.94 $1,629
1011–1393 1130 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 30 112.00–153.00 $124.84 $1,411
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1025–1075 1050 (<2 yrs)Open 2 112.00–129.00 $120.70 $1,267
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1040 1040 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 114.50 $114.50 $1,191

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1276 1276 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 6 1,300.00 $1,300.00
1324 1324 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 5 1,900.00 $1,900.00

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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.