Cattle Market Pulse

Cattlemen's Livestock Auction Market Report

Dalhart, Texas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, February 29, 2024

2,761 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $221.79/cwt -0.11 vs last sale · ≈ $1,697/hd at 765 lb · 198 head
light 9-weight M&L 1 steers $219.88/cwt -5.12 vs last sale · ≈ $2,014/hd at 916 lb · 175 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $242.97/cwt -5.94 vs last sale · ≈ $1,883/hd at 775 lb · 167 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,761 3,884 2,559
Feeder cattle 2,120 3,260 1,681
Slaughter cattle 641 624 878

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: All classes of steers traded mostly 1.00 to 5.00 lower. Feeder heifers traded firm to 5.00 higher, and heifer calves traded mostly 5.00 to 10.00 higher. Trading activity was moderate to active on moderate to good buyer demand. Slaughter cows traded mostly steady to 2.00 lower. Record breaking heat accompanied by extreme high winds moved across the Panhandle on Monday and Tuesday. Sustained winds of 30 to 40 mph accompanied by 65 to 70 mph gusts fueled the fast moving wildfires, with 5 active wildfires still burning accounting for more than 1,249,500 acres burned. A cold front brought some much needed rain and snow to the trading region today, which will assist in the fire efforts.

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
365 365 2 372.50 $372.50 $1,360 -27.50
409–443 423 30 335.00–385.00 $363.65 $1,538 -4.86
457–492 479 44 319.00–343.00 $321.24 $1,539 -17.41
503–538 521 24 310.00–339.00 $331.88 $1,729 +13.88
553–563 560 37 301.00–315.00 $303.81 $1,701 -5.26
563 563 5 290.00 $290.00 $1,633 -19.07
613–637 623 7 280.00–297.00 $289.55 $1,804 -6.28
639 639 6 271.00 $271.00 $1,732 -24.83
657–675 663 15 266.00–267.00 $266.66 $1,768 -1.94
729 729 15 249.00 $249.00 $1,815 -3.15
755–793 775 167 241.00–248.00 $242.97 $1,883 -5.94
811–834 818 106 239.00–242.50 $239.89 $1,962 -2.34
870 870 20 228.00 $228.00 $1,984 -11.00
910–926 916 175 218.00–221.00 $219.88 $2,014 -5.12
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
331–347 338 7 341.00–389.00 $362.13 $1,224 —
377 377 3 355.00 $355.00 $1,338 -30.00
448 448 15 304.00 $304.00 $1,362 —
501–533 522 21 286.00–305.00 $299.19 $1,562 -17.46
554–597 572 7 298.00–300.00 $299.11 $1,711 +21.02
608 608 2 285.00 $285.00 $1,733 +8.61
657–678 676 91 257.00–261.00 $260.66 $1,762 -3.71
859 859 29 227.00 $227.00 $1,950 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
326 326 7 260.00 $260.00 $848 —
376 376 5 280.00 $280.00 $1,053 -13.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
373–388 376 16 331.00–333.00 $332.61 $1,251 +32.61
403–404 403 26 329.00–335.00 $332.46 $1,340 +46.60
470–496 477 53 288.00–290.00 $288.37 $1,376 +3.63
502–543 526 63 274.00–295.00 $283.50 $1,491 +10.17
539 539 5 238.00 $238.00 $1,283 -35.33
550–591 562 21 274.00–283.00 $280.29 $1,575 +13.20
618 618 3 235.00 $235.00 $1,452 -22.13
621–632 622 55 260.00–268.00 $267.30 $1,663 +10.17
673 673 12 249.00 $249.00 $1,676 +14.58
722 722 6 227.50 $227.50 $1,643 -1.78
753–793 765 198 221.00–223.00 $221.79 $1,697 +1.64
812 812 3 223.00 $223.00 $1,811 +4.73
861–867 866 20 201.00–211.00 $202.99 $1,758 -13.01
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
347 thin fleshed 347 6 330.00 $330.00 $1,145 —
430 430 2 291.00 $291.00 $1,251 —
497 497 3 278.00 $278.00 $1,382 —
591 591 25 270.00 $270.00 $1,596 +29.36
757–773 765 138 219.50–222.75 $221.08 $1,691 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305 305 11 270.00 $270.00 $824 +29.00
378–383 380 9 254.00–277.00 $261.73 $995 +11.73
449 449 19 248.00 $248.00 $1,114 +25.95

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
694 694 9 220.00 $220.00 $1,527 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 8 376.00 $376.00 $1,184 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
628–885 749 85-90% 13 65.00–75.00 $71.96 $539 —
939–998 953 85-90% 22 76.00–87.00 $82.18 $783 —
947–995 955 85-90% 12 91.00–94.00 $91.42 $873 —
960–962 962 85-90% 10 102.00–112.00 $103.00 $991 —
1035–1145 1108 85-90% 6 60.00–76.00 $64.98 $720 -28.72
1003–1328 1126 85-90% 61 97.50–107.50 $104.77 $1,180 +11.07
1010–1442 1164 85-90% 34 86.00–96.00 $91.17 $1,061 -12.55
1393 1393 85-90% 12 115.50 $115.50 $1,609 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1083–1354 1207 80-85% 22 91.00–103.00 $97.93 $1,182 —
1060–1343 1283 80-85% 24 106.00–115.00 $110.50 $1,418 +12.00
1535 1535 80-85% 1 118.00 $118.00 $1,811 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1275 1275 75-80% 1 104.00 $104.00 $1,326 —
1335–1455 1443 75-80% 12 105.00–117.00 $115.77 $1,671 —
1425–1755 1535 75-80% 3 115.00–121.00 $117.29 $1,800 +2.03

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1150 1150 1 115.00 $115.00 $1,322 —
1450 1450 1 119.00 $119.00 $1,726 —
1565 1565 1 120.00 $120.00 $1,878 —

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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.