Cattle Market Pulse

Cattlemen's Livestock Auction Market Report

Dalhart, Texas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, March 12, 2026

1,797 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1 steers $379.63/cwt -18.11 vs last sale · ≈ $2,733/hd at 720 lb · 187 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $392.67/cwt -11.70 vs last sale · ≈ $2,596/hd at 661 lb · 128 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1-2 steers $350.65/cwt ≈ $2,760/hd at 787 lb · 123 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,797 1,174 3,008
Feeder cattle 1,550 956 2,707
Slaughter cattle 247 212 301
Replacement cattle — 6 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: There were few comparable sales to trend, but there was a definite lower undertone. Steers weighing 800-900 pounds made the most definite gains, bringing 11.00-16.00 higher. Healthy, thin fleshed calves coming off of wheat seem to be the highest in demand. Slaughter cattle sold slightly higher this week with average to high yielding boner cows bringing 5.00-9.00 higher. Sale activity was moderate on moderate 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
404–438 thin fleshed 422 13 560.00–580.00 $571.17 $2,410 -3.83
441 441 7 577.50 $577.50 $2,547 —
453–458 thin fleshed 454 47 530.00–575.00 $567.27 $2,575 +62.27
482 482 7 487.50 $487.50 $2,350 -20.00
507 507 3 521.00 $521.00 $2,641 +41.00
551–566 thin fleshed 559 20 490.00 $490.00 $2,739 —
593 593 46 412.00 $412.00 $2,443 -39.33
629 thin fleshed 629 26 407.00 $407.00 $2,560 —
640 640 10 398.00 $398.00 $2,547 -19.62
656–665 661 128 391.00–395.00 $392.67 $2,596 -14.83
715–737 720 187 378.50–380.00 $379.63 $2,733 -18.11
751–754 752 122 374.50–376.00 $375.05 $2,820 +1.53
804–814 806 25 345.00–355.50 $347.12 $2,798 -6.88
827 827 44 347.00 $347.00 $2,870 -7.00
868 868 6 345.00 $345.00 $2,995 +16.00
907–917 912 119 327.00–328.50 $327.74 $2,989 +11.87
966 966 32 317.50 $317.50 $3,067 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
512 512 12 455.00 $455.00 $2,330 —
589 thin fleshed 589 2 410.00 $410.00 $2,415 —
625 625 3 387.50 $387.50 $2,422 -20.50
710 710 3 355.00 $355.00 $2,520 —
780–790 785 93 350.25–352.75 $351.51 $2,759 —
794 794 30 348.00 $348.00 $2,763 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
640 640 11 405.00 $405.00 $2,592 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
399 thin fleshed 399 9 517.50 $517.50 $2,065 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
437 thin fleshed 437 21 495.00 $495.00 $2,163 —
453 453 3 440.00 $440.00 $1,993 -32.72
469–488 484 23 457.50–460.00 $458.03 $2,217 -14.69
500–543 536 12 395.00–417.50 $398.50 $2,136 -31.50
574 574 4 352.50 $352.50 $2,023 -49.26
651–653 651 80 352.00–361.50 $360.79 $2,349 -9.40
797 797 3 300.00 $300.00 $2,391 -33.00
981 981 7 285.00 $285.00 $2,796 +55.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
680–681 681 18 322.50–336.00 $334.50 $2,278 —
750 750 12 317.50 $317.50 $2,381 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1062 1062 3 200.00 $200.00 $2,124 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
255 255 1 1,550.00 $1,550.00 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
755 755 4 345.00 $345.00 $2,605 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
909 909 80-85% 5 143.00 $143.00 $1,300 —
1018–1410 1187 80-85% 28 141.00–148.00 $143.16 $1,699 —
1098–1362 1275 80-85% 17 149.00–157.00 $154.42 $1,969 —
1284–1580 1394 80-85% 28 161.00–168.00 $165.43 $2,306 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
898 898 85-90% 3 131.00 $131.00 $1,176 -4.46
928–932 930 85-90% 5 123.00–124.00 $123.40 $1,148 —
1217 1217 85-90% 3 141.00 $141.00 $1,716 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1938 1938 2 206.00 $206.00 $3,992 —
YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1525 1525 1 188.00 $188.00 $2,867 —

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Beef/Dairy Heifers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
459 459 9 330.00 $330.00 $1,515 —

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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.