Cattle Market Pulse

Cattlemen's Livestock Auction Market Report

Dalhart, Texas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, April 18, 2024

1,234 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $227.00/cwt +4.00 vs last sale · ≈ $1,678/hd at 739 lb · 143 head
light 8-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $216.50/cwt +28.50 vs last sale · ≈ $1,749/hd at 808 lb · 71 head
light 9-weight M&L 1 steers $219.00/cwt ≈ $1,989/hd at 908 lb · 54 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,234 1,579 2,314
Feeder cattle 976 1,307 1,764
Slaughter cattle 258 272 550

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steers and heifers traded mostly 2.00 to 5.00 higher on limited comparable sales, which is inline with the gains noticed on the board throughout the week. Not enough comparable sales on steer or heifer calves for a market trend. Slaughter cows traded mostly steady on Lean cows and 2.00 to 3.00 lower on Breaking and Boning Utility cows. Trading activity was moderate to active on moderate to good buyer demand.

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
459 unweaned 459 2 340.00 $340.00 $1,561 —
450–484 478 16 359.00–364.00 $359.88 $1,720 +18.88
518–524 522 9 301.00–313.00 $304.97 $1,592 +3.97
549 549 4 298.00 $298.00 $1,636 -28.76
558–598 585 24 285.00–304.00 $297.37 $1,740 —
608 608 5 292.00 $292.00 $1,775 +12.00
681–685 684 23 253.00–266.00 $262.62 $1,796 -9.57
754–759 756 14 245.00–250.00 $246.79 $1,866 +5.29
811 811 36 235.00 $235.00 $1,906 +6.57
908 908 54 219.00 $219.00 $1,989 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
343 343 4 339.00 $339.00 $1,163 -59.00
498 498 16 309.00 $309.00 $1,539 —
683 683 3 251.00 $251.00 $1,714 +7.73
713 713 30 245.50 $245.50 $1,750 +15.50
763 763 2 235.00 $235.00 $1,793 -5.00
925 925 2 200.00 $200.00 $1,850 —
963 963 2 194.00 $194.00 $1,868 —
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
364 364 9 270.00 $270.00 $983 —
484 484 5 290.00 $290.00 $1,404 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
485 485 3 279.00 $279.00 $1,353 +3.00
502 502 51 273.00 $273.00 $1,370 +7.00
738–739 739 143 227.00 $227.00 $1,678 +4.00
808 808 71 216.50 $216.50 $1,749 +28.50
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 375 2 298.00 $298.00 $1,118 -31.00
423 unweaned 423 6 294.00 $294.00 $1,244 —
430 430 12 316.00 $316.00 $1,359 +25.00
492 492 10 280.00 $280.00 $1,378 -9.00
502 502 3 280.00 $280.00 $1,406 +3.88
520–530 unweaned 527 7 259.00–266.00 $260.97 $1,375 —
573–585 574 21 262.00–271.00 $270.13 $1,551 +2.13
610 610 3 251.00 $251.00 $1,531 -9.00
678 678 16 255.00 $255.00 $1,729 +27.40
737 737 3 222.50 $222.50 $1,640 +2.40
Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
418 418 2 235.00 $235.00 $982 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 1 391.00 $391.00 $1,290 —
520 520 2 293.00 $293.00 $1,524 —
685 685 3 216.00 $216.00 $1,480 —
953 953 5 188.00 $188.00 $1,792 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
668–888 741 85-90% 6 86.00–96.00 $89.99 $667 —
804–955 842 85-90% 8 100.00 $100.00 $842 —
785–995 893 85-90% 3 99.00–109.00 $102.11 $912 +8.35
933–985 954 85-90% 5 115.00–121.00 $117.48 $1,121 —
1003–1281 1096 85-90% 23 104.00–114.00 $110.41 $1,210 +15.81
1106–1125 1113 85-90% 8 95.00–101.00 $97.52 $1,085 —
1025–1480 1275 85-90% 52 117.00–126.50 $123.13 $1,570 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1093–1713 1242 80-85% 31 119.00–129.00 $123.63 $1,535 —
1208–1340 1293 80-85% 20 132.00–136.00 $134.65 $1,741 —
1245–1355 1318 80-85% 3 110.00–118.00 $115.48 $1,522 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1360 1360 75-80% 1 139.00 $139.00 $1,890 +6.88
1547–1840 1620 75-80% 4 128.00–133.00 $129.42 $2,097 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1074–1255 1153 10 134.00–152.00 $146.84 $1,693 —
1455–1655 1588 3 141.00–143.00 $142.39 $2,261 —
2050 2050 1 152.00 $152.00 $3,116 —

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Beef Dairy Heifers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
383 383 2 270.00 $270.00 $1,034 —
459 459 6 262.50 $262.50 $1,205 +15.50

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Beef Dairy Steers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
451 451 8 275.00 $275.00 $1,240 +8.00
509 509 6 265.00 $265.00 $1,349 —

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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.