Cattle Market Pulse

Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 16, 2024

1,543 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $292.24/cwt ≈ $1,619/hd at 554 lb · 24 head
light 5-weight M&L 2 heifers $266.31/cwt ≈ $1,369/hd at 514 lb · 19 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $278.65/cwt +22.65 vs last sale · ≈ $1,597/hd at 573 lb · 12 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,543 755 1,327
Feeder cattle 317 246 482
Slaughter cattle 711 269 523
Replacement cattle 515 240 322

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last sale: Feeder cattle were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Demand for feeders was mostly moderate to good. Quality was mostly plain to average today, however quality today was better than last weeks sale. Most calves were offered in small packages or as singles. CME Feeder and live cattle contracts all closed higher today as strong gains were seen throughout the week for the boxed beef cutout prompting buyers to push contracts higher. Boxed beef values closed 3.38 and 2.20 higher at 310.15 and 296.51, on choice and select respectfully. Market activity was mostly moderate to active this week. Weigh up cows sold on good to very good demand for heavy offerings. Packers showed good demand for all cows on offer. Slaughter cows sold mostly steady to firm on breaking and boning cows, lean cows sold mostly 2.00-4.00 higher. Feeding cows sold steady to 2.00 higher on boning and breaking flesh cows, thin fleshed cows sold 2.00-4.00 higher. Quality was mostly average to very attractive this week. Private feeding cow buyers were very aggressive this week as they showed good demand for thin cows that will flesh up quickly. Weigh up conditions were mixed this week with a mix of both empty and full cows seen. Slaughter bulls sold mostly 5.00-8.00 higher. Bull quality was mostly attractive to very attractive today. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold 10.00-15.00 higher. Quality was mostly attractive to very attractive this week. Demand was mostly good to very good with the best demand seen for cows which lost calves. Many open 2 and 3 year old cows sold for 1,900-2,100 per head.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
408 408 6 340.00 $340.00 $1,387 —
492 492 3 337.50 $337.50 $1,660 —
500–512 507 5 307.00–322.50 $316.39 $1,604 -1.11
595 595 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,785 —
616–620 617 7 289.00–303.00 $298.98 $1,845 +36.67
690 690 1 265.00 $265.00 $1,828 +9.00
805 805 5 243.00 $243.00 $1,956 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
353 353 2 325.00 $325.00 $1,147 —
500–505 503 4 295.00–300.00 $297.51 $1,496 —
628–637 634 8 230.00–231.00 $230.37 $1,461 —
755–780 763 3 218.00–228.00 $224.59 $1,714 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
722 722 3 263.00 $263.00 $1,899 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
473 473 2 305.00 $305.00 $1,443 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
558 558 2 327.53 $327.53 $1,828 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
551–554 553 21 290.00–300.00 $292.85 $1,619 —
562 562 3 288.00 $288.00 $1,619 —
613–645 633 8 285.00–286.50 $285.54 $1,807 —
661 661 4 276.00 $276.00 $1,824 —
793–798 796 6 235.00–239.00 $236.33 $1,881 —
885 885 6 234.50 $234.50 $2,075 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
452–475 461 5 282.50–299.00 $289.30 $1,334 —
510 510 2 282.50 $282.50 $1,441 —
568–590 573 12 275.00–280.00 $278.65 $1,597 +22.65
625 625 2 272.50 $272.50 $1,703 +28.50
743 743 2 235.00 $235.00 $1,746 —
846 846 10 222.00 $222.00 $1,878 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
501–548 514 19 261.00–277.00 $266.31 $1,369 —
580 580 2 257.50 $257.50 $1,494 +15.00
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
719 719 6 225.00 $225.00 $1,618 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
436 436 5 292.50 $292.50 $1,275 +23.07
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 5 237.50 $237.50 $1,057 -4.62

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Feeder Bulls

Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
750 750 5 227.50 $227.50 $1,706 —
849 849 7 219.00 $219.00 $1,859 —
897 897 3 217.50 $217.50 $1,951 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
735 735 6 244.00 $244.00 $1,793 -4.00
782 782 5 242.00 $242.00 $1,892 —
948 948 2 220.00 $220.00 $2,086 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185 1185 1 187.50 $187.50 $2,222 —
1200 1200 1 184.00 $184.00 $2,208 +14.00
1220 fancy 1220 4 190.00 $190.00 $2,318 —
1254 1254 4 160.00 $160.00 $2,006 -1.24
1345 1345 1 155.00 $155.00 $2,085 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
631 631 6 263.00 $263.00 $1,660 +13.00
745 745 2 236.00 $236.00 $1,758 —
960 960 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,824 —
1065 1065 1 160.00 $160.00 $1,704 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185 1185 2 178.00 $178.00 $2,109 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
130 130 2 525.00 $525.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
840–995 883 85-90% 5 90.00–97.50 $94.76 $837 —
840–990 929 85-90% 14 102.50–117.50 $110.17 $1,023 —
990 990 85-90% 2 122.00 $122.00 $1,208 +21.92
1065 1065 85-90% 3 104.00 $104.00 $1,108 —
890–1238 1081 85-90% 27 107.00–123.00 $119.12 $1,288 —
1005–1460 1114 85-90% 32 105.00–120.00 $112.29 $1,251 +0.78
1025–1285 1185 85-90% 11 132.00–141.00 $134.88 $1,598 —
990–1305 1187 85-90% 127 124.00–133.00 $130.07 $1,544 —
1000–1298 1191 85-90% 19 122.00–131.00 $125.56 $1,495 —
1075–1281 1208 85-90% 65 133.00–139.00 $134.57 $1,626 +8.44
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1237–1550 1387 80-85% 114 127.00–139.00 $133.59 $1,853 —
1270–1770 1400 80-85% 31 127.00–138.00 $132.34 $1,853 +7.43
1250–1540 1407 80-85% 36 140.00–146.00 $142.57 $2,006 +17.66
1310–1565 1425 80-85% 25 116.00–126.00 $121.79 $1,736 -10.12
1355–1525 1448 80-85% 3 115.00–123.00 $117.83 $1,706 -15.05
1430–1555 1489 80-85% 4 140.50–143.00 $141.40 $2,105 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1485 1485 75-80% 8 145.00 $145.00 $2,153 —
1447–1605 1491 75-80% 16 135.50–142.00 $138.49 $2,065 —
1525–1655 1574 75-80% 16 129.00–135.00 $133.01 $2,094 —
1515–1650 1583 75-80% 2 142.00–147.00 $144.39 $2,286 —
1495–1733 1626 75-80% 11 142.00–145.00 $143.03 $2,326 —
1555–1695 1628 75-80% 6 135.00–141.50 $139.16 $2,266 —
1583–1935 1671 75-80% 4 125.00–134.00 $131.39 $2,196 +0.14

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1300 1300 1 132.00 $132.00 $1,716 —
1335 1335 1 144.00 $144.00 $1,922 +24.00
1240–1453 1351 11 120.50–136.00 $126.93 $1,715 —
1385 1385 1 137.00 $137.00 $1,897 —
1465–2135 1752 15 130.00–144.00 $137.48 $2,409 —
1488–2205 1770 35 144.00–159.00 $151.17 $2,676 —
1765–2375 2006 21 162.00–175.00 $166.75 $3,345 —
YG2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
2685 2685 1 141.00 $141.00 $3,786 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
784–1365 963 (<2 yrs)Open 209 151.00–230.00 $207.68 $2,000
815–1570 1031 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 111 137.00–221.00 $176.38 $1,818
1093–1320 1193 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 8 131.00–137.00 $134.16 $1,601
1469–1545 1494 (<2 yrs)Open 6 155.50–156.00 $155.67 $2,326
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
839–1055 917 (<2 yrs)Open 14 167.00–205.00 $187.91 $1,723
900–1180 1057 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 5 132.50–139.00 $135.37 $1,431
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
746–790 755 (<2 yrs)Open 5 191.00–215.00 $196.02 $1,480
790 thin fleshed 790 (<2 yrs)Open 1 175.00 $175.00 $1,382
840–888 876 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 4 155.00 $155.00 $1,358
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1060 1060 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 150.00 $150.00 $1,590
1135–1230 1183 (<2 yrs)Open 2 142.00–145.00 $143.56 $1,698

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
990–1063 1056 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 10 2,175.00–2,200.00 $2,177.34
1235 1235 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 4 1,550.00 $1,550.00
1080–1505 1240 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 11 2,200.00–2,375.00 $2,319.24
1459 1459 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 4 2,075.00 $2,075.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1416 1416 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 2,600.00 $2,600.00 —
1530 1530 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 2,350.00 $2,350.00 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1775 1775 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 1 2,675.00 $2,675.00 —

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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.