Cattle Market Pulse

Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, November 14, 2022

1,253 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 $167.71/cwt +1.71 vs last sale · ≈ $971/hd at 579 lb · 40 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 steers $216.56/cwt +8.65 vs last sale · ≈ $1,050/hd at 485 lb · 26 head
light 9-weight M&L 1 heifers $158.75/cwt ≈ $1,470/hd at 926 lb · 23 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,253 1,564 2,192
Feeder cattle 490 703 397
Slaughter cattle 616 670 1,354
Replacement cattle 147 191 441

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder cattle were too lightly tested either this week or last week to develop any market trend. Demand was mostly light for light offerings. Quality today was mostly plain. Snowy conditions were seen much of the morning and many cattle looked stressed and dirty. Package sizes were mostly small today with many singles on offer. Market activity was mostly slow. Weigh up cows sold on mostly moderate demand for moderate to heavy offerings. Slaughter cows sold fully steady on all classes. Packers opted to send most of the cow offering to feed, either short term feed for the upcoming holidays or high quality cows suitable to feed to premium white. Both short term feeding cows and high quality feeding cows sold steady. Slaughter bulls sold steady in a narrow comparison. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold generally steady in a narrow comparison. Demand was mostly moderate.

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
453–492 unweaned 485 26 210.00–218.00 $216.56 $1,050 +8.65
517 unweaned 517 6 205.00 $205.00 $1,060 +8.70
644 unweaned 644 8 166.50 $166.50 $1,072 -13.46
733 unweaned 733 8 156.50 $156.50 $1,147 —
750 unweaned 750 2 156.00 $156.00 $1,170 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
376 unweaned 376 5 222.50 $222.50 $837 —
403 unweaned 403 2 220.00 $220.00 $887 -12.50
493 unweaned 493 8 180.00 $180.00 $887 —
500–508 unweaned 503 16 180.00–198.00 $192.35 $968 +8.35
555 unweaned 555 4 153.00 $153.00 $849 -15.00
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
720–748 736 7 150.00–150.50 $150.21 $1,106 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
510 unweaned 510 19 173.00 $173.00 $882 -0.76
562 562 9 149.50 $149.50 $840 —
584 unweaned 584 31 173.00 $173.00 $1,010 +7.00
610 unweaned 610 11 159.50 $159.50 $973 —
653 unweaned 653 16 144.00 $144.00 $940 —
704 704 15 136.00 $136.00 $957 —
861 861 15 160.50 $160.50 $1,382 —
926 unweaned 926 23 158.75 $158.75 $1,470 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
272 unweaned 272 3 180.00 $180.00 $490 —
452 unweaned 452 9 160.00 $160.00 $723 —
517–537 unweaned 522 21 156.00–158.00 $157.51 $822 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1072–1079 1077 11 142.50 $142.50 $1,535 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
585 585 10 145.00 $145.00 $848 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
394 unweaned 394 7 162.50 $162.50 $640 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 unweaned 470 2 187.50 $187.50 $881 -9.13
725 725 2 155.00 $155.00 $1,124 -2.00

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1332–1505 1385 80-85% 22 57.50–66.50 $62.76 $869 -2.17
1115–1640 1418 80-85% 73 66.00–80.00 $77.65 $1,101 +16.83
1320–1660 1423 80-85% 15 55.50–64.00 $61.77 $879 -14.44
1423–1435 1424 80-85% 9 80.25–82.50 $80.50 $1,146 +4.29
1400–1510 1426 80-85% 5 66.00–74.00 $67.81 $967 -8.40
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905 905 85-90% 1 45.50 $45.50 $412 -6.97
915 915 85-90% 1 33.00 $33.00 $302 -19.47
1120 1120 85-90% 2 43.00 $43.00 $482 +1.79
1000–1260 1131 85-90% 30 51.50–60.50 $55.18 $624 +13.97
1040–1265 1134 85-90% 7 54.50–62.00 $57.74 $655 +16.53
1117–1290 1142 85-90% 25 64.00–71.00 $65.35 $746 +24.14
1170 1170 85-90% 1 73.00 $73.00 $854 +10.34
1170–1268 1242 85-90% 10 61.50–64.00 $62.48 $776 -2.78
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250–1525 1469 75-80% 7 75.00–77.00 $75.67 $1,112 -5.22
1741 1741 75-80% 4 81.50 $81.50 $1,419 —
1750–1843 1812 75-80% 3 73.50–77.50 $74.79 $1,355 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1165 1165 1 89.50 $89.50 $1,043 —
1280 1280 1 84.00 $84.00 $1,075 —
1290 1290 1 63.00 $63.00 $813 —
1845–1945 1878 4 87.00–96.50 $91.02 $1,709 -4.98
1885–2035 1963 3 77.50–86.50 $83.06 $1,630 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
825–1243 929 (<2 yrs)Open 35 81.00–117.00 $108.61 $1,009
918–1305 1097 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 32 71.00–107.00 $82.89 $909
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
950–1145 1048 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 63.50–67.00 $65.09 $682

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1020 1020 Young (2-4 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 2 1,350.00 $1,350.00
1185 1185 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,325.00 $1,325.00
1204 1204 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 4 950.00 $950.00
1208 1208 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 1,300.00 $1,300.00
1318–1440 1359 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 6 1,010.00–1,075.00 $1,032.96
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1360 1360 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 4 960.00 $960.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1390 1390 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 65.50 $65.50 $910

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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.