Cattle Market Pulse

Cattlemen's Livestock Auction Market Report

Belen, New Mexico · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, January 15, 2021

801 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Cattlemen's Livestock Auction report →

heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $127.34/cwt +9.60 vs last sale · ≈ $733/hd at 576 lb · 31 head
light 4-weight M&L 1 steers $168.16/cwt +19.76 vs last sale · ≈ $711/hd at 423 lb · 27 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1 steers $174.07/cwt +16.28 vs last sale · ≈ $646/hd at 371 lb · 22 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 801 1,069 0
Feeder cattle 533 734 0
Slaughter cattle 206 195 0
Replacement cattle 62 140 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, steer and heifer calves sold 15.00-20.00 higher on comparable sales. Feeder steers and heifers not well tested. Trade was very active. Demand was very good on a good quality of offerings. Slaughter cows and bulls mostly steady.

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
293 293 2 181.00 $181.00 $530 +14.51
305–348 333 9 168.00–176.00 $172.18 $573 +19.16
370 fancy 370 2 180.00 $180.00 $666 —
360–395 371 20 165.00–177.00 $173.48 $644 +15.69
420 thin fleshed 420 2 176.00 $176.00 $739 —
400–445 423 25 160.00–175.00 $167.53 $709 +19.13
457 value added 457 3 166.00 $166.00 $759 —
465 fancy 465 2 169.00 $169.00 $786 —
450–498 474 17 149.00–162.00 $154.06 $730 +5.99
500–545 527 15 140.00–152.00 $145.52 $767 +12.52
555–588 572 18 140.00–146.00 $141.87 $811 +7.57
583 583 2 135.00 $135.00 $787 +0.70
600–637 626 6 130.00–136.00 $132.48 $829 +4.06
635–648 unweaned 642 9 120.00–129.50 $126.36 $811 —
703 unweaned 703 6 123.50 $123.50 $868 —
718 718 3 120.00 $120.00 $862 -8.00
790 790 2 135.00 $135.00 $1,066 —
797 unweaned 797 7 123.00 $123.00 $980 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
245 245 2 167.00–170.00 $168.50 $413 —
255–280 265 7 155.00–165.00 $162.53 $431 —
400–435 420 4 151.00–157.00 $152.55 $641 +12.89
455–490 472 3 139.00–141.00 $139.99 $661 +7.67
505–535 513 4 136.00–143.00 $140.43 $720 +10.43
550 550 3 138.00 $138.00 $759 +12.45
643–645 644 4 117.00–123.00 $120.00 $773 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
480–495 485 3 133.00–134.00 $133.66 $648 +7.38
522 522 5 129.00 $129.00 $673 —
565–575 572 3 125.00 $125.00 $715 —
723 723 2 117.00 $117.00 $846 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300–345 fancy 323 2 168.00–172.00 $169.86 $549 —
300–348 331 12 150.00–165.00 $158.61 $525 +5.43
370–385 377 5 148.00–161.00 $156.78 $591 —
383 fancy 383 2 166.00 $166.00 $636 —
405–415 412 5 148.00–160.00 $155.40 $640 +27.66
427 thin fleshed 427 3 168.00 $168.00 $717 —
453 fancy 453 2 159.00 $159.00 $720 +19.00
465–480 474 13 140.00–156.00 $146.61 $695 +17.66
512–532 521 12 135.00–150.00 $140.17 $730 +15.24
555 555 3 126.50 $126.50 $702 +8.76
552–596 568 14 132.00–139.00 $134.43 $764 +16.69
573–590 588 14 120.00–120.50 $120.43 $708 +2.69
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–335 323 2 146.00–149.00 $147.56 $477 +21.63
365–395 388 4 141.00–142.00 $141.24 $548 +12.70
400–445 426 9 128.00–142.00 $135.23 $576 +14.08
460–496 487 15 128.00–137.00 $135.34 $659 +12.51
500–545 523 2 130.00–132.00 $131.04 $685 +6.54
545 545 2 117.00 $117.00 $638 —
550 550 1 121.00 $121.00 $666 +8.79
610–645 626 5 114.00–120.00 $118.81 $744 +5.89
712 712 3 113.00 $113.00 $805 —
860 860 15 114.00 $114.00 $980 —
934 934 10 109.00 $109.00 $1,018 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470–495 491 6 123.00–125.00 $123.32 $606 +23.32
540 540 2 120.00 $120.00 $648 +20.00
578 578 2 114.00 $114.00 $659 —
688 688 2 114.50 $114.50 $788 —
758 758 2 112.00 $112.00 $849 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
212 212 3 350.00 $350.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
780–785 782 85-90% 3 33.00–35.00 $34.33 $268 +0.54
770–1045 871 85-90% 26 35.00–45.50 $41.84 $364 —
720–1310 977 85-90% 54 44.00–53.00 $49.81 $487 +7.75
840–1068 1008 85-90% 7 45.00–53.00 $49.33 $497 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
828–1500 1060 80-85% 35 48.50–54.50 $52.83 $560 -3.17
950–1490 1139 80-85% 4 48.00–48.25 $48.06 $547 -1.89
970–1280 1143 80-85% 9 49.00–61.00 $53.72 $614 +3.77
1246–1408 1295 80-85% 10 56.00–56.50 $56.16 $727 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905–1480 1227 75-80% 7 49.00–54.50 $53.34 $654 —
1135–1475 1295 75-80% 4 47.50–58.00 $53.09 $688 —
1690 1690 75-80% 1 47.50 $47.50 $803 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1255–1630 1417 13 67.00–76.00 $72.07 $1,021 —
1420–1990 1699 13 76.00–82.00 $78.64 $1,336 —
2040 2040 1 86.50 $86.50 $1,765 —
YG1-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1050 1050 1 56.00 $56.00 $588 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
790–1250 901 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 5 725.00–890.00 $803.00
820–1210 1049 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 4 700.00–1,075.00 $900.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
835 835 Young (2-4 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 1 625.00 $625.00
890–945 918 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 2 500.00–600.00 $550.00
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1045 1045 Young (2-4 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 1 1,025.00 $1,025.00

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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
1010–1415 1213 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 900.00–1,050.00 $975.00 —
1110–1455 1371 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 6 950.00–1,075.00 $1,029.17 —
1465 1465 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 960.00 $960.00 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
985 985 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 1 870.00 $870.00 —

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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.