Cattle Market Pulse

Cattlemen's Livestock Auction Market Report

Dalhart, Texas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, May 21, 2026

1,747 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 $334.27/cwt ≈ $2,544/hd at 761 lb · 184 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $420.87/cwt +31.24 vs last sale · ≈ $2,433/hd at 578 lb · 103 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 steers $385.00/cwt -10.01 vs last sale · ≈ $2,814/hd at 731 lb · 69 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,747 1,189 1,626
Feeder cattle 1,286 953 1,292
Slaughter cattle 461 233 334
Replacement cattle — 3 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: The market seemed to turn softer this week, particularly steer calves weighing up to 650. Heifers seemed to fare better, but there were too few comparable sales to determine a trend. Quality seemed to be plainer as drought conditions persist in the area. Slaughter cattle reporting was shorter this week, but the market fared positive on high yielding cows and bulls. A large supply of dries and late calvers were brought in off of droughty and burned out country. High yielding beef cows brought upwards of $1.90/lb for the first time this week, and high yielding, good flesh bulls remain over $2.00. Trade was mixed with the higher demand favoring the slaughter cattle market.

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
360 thin fleshed 360 3 635.00 $635.00 $2,286 —
398 398 4 542.50 $542.50 $2,159 -37.50
433 433 6 522.50 $522.50 $2,262 —
471 471 19 495.00 $495.00 $2,331 -42.50
569 569 8 482.50 $482.50 $2,745 ±0.00
690 690 5 390.00 $390.00 $2,691 —
731 731 69 385.00 $385.00 $2,814 -10.01
755–765 760 11 365.00–382.50 $377.26 $2,867 -4.45
804 804 5 338.00 $338.00 $2,718 —
844 844 21 345.00 $345.00 $2,912 —
869–875 871 10 324.00–346.00 $339.37 $2,956 —
900 900 2 326.00 $326.00 $2,934 -17.00
955–970 968 18 302.50–317.00 $315.41 $3,053 —
1017–1029 1028 65 297.00–299.00 $298.79 $3,072 -6.21
1048 1048 2 309.00 $309.00 $3,238 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
338 thin fleshed 338 9 555.00 $555.00 $1,876 —
390 thin fleshed 390 4 590.00 $590.00 $2,301 —
440 thin fleshed 440 28 500.00 $500.00 $2,200 —
458 458 2 450.00 $450.00 $2,061 —
463 thin fleshed 463 4 445.00 $445.00 $2,060 -32.50
570 thin fleshed 570 7 425.00 $425.00 $2,422 -15.00
573–590 580 5 417.50–420.00 $418.98 $2,430 -6.02
672 672 3 379.00 $379.00 $2,547 +4.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 thin fleshed 375 3 560.00 $560.00 $2,100 —
514 514 7 480.00 $480.00 $2,467 —
553 553 3 452.50 $452.50 $2,502 —
691 691 4 405.00 $405.00 $2,799 —
785–791 788 7 352.00–352.50 $352.21 $2,775 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
153 153 3 1,350.00 $1,350.00 —
208–225 212 4 1,550.00 $1,550.00 -450.00
255 thin fleshed 255 2 1,850.00 $1,850.00 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
347 thin fleshed 347 3 495.00 $495.00 $1,718 —
398 thin fleshed 398 3 490.00 $490.00 $1,950 —
420–430 422 13 452.50–470.00 $456.61 $1,927 —
469–474 thin fleshed 471 9 460.00 $460.00 $2,167 —
473–484 481 19 452.50–455.00 $452.76 $2,178 -32.24
510 510 7 430.00 $430.00 $2,193 -14.99
560–581 578 103 420.00–427.50 $420.87 $2,433 +31.24
608 thin fleshed 608 7 420.00 $420.00 $2,554 +15.00
655–697 658 47 360.00–370.00 $369.32 $2,430 +6.82
731 731 7 333.00 $333.00 $2,434 -18.02
751–780 761 184 324.00–342.50 $334.27 $2,544 —
858–862 859 60 310.25–312.00 $310.78 $2,670 —
904 904 5 295.00 $295.00 $2,667 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 thin fleshed 370 14 490.00 $490.00 $1,813 —
395 395 2 362.50 $362.50 $1,432 —
493 thin fleshed 493 3 422.50 $422.50 $2,083 -7.50
540 thin fleshed 540 2 410.00 $410.00 $2,214 -17.50
559–578 570 18 392.50–405.00 $399.52 $2,277 —
770 770 2 307.00 $307.00 $2,364 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
881–1061 958 27 290.00–306.00 $298.59 $2,860 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
515 515 3 419.00 $419.00 $2,158 —
641 thin fleshed 641 4 393.00 $393.00 $2,519 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
180 180 3 1,450.00 $1,450.00 -200.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370 370 3 570.00 $570.00 $2,109 —
478 478 4 462.50 $462.50 $2,211 -32.50
502 502 3 470.00 $470.00 $2,359 —
1078 1078 2 240.00 $240.00 $2,587 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
945 945 80-85% 2 181.00 $181.00 $1,710 —
1110–1159 1138 80-85% 7 167.00–174.00 $169.93 $1,934 —
1156–1425 1238 80-85% 18 187.00–194.00 $190.41 $2,357 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1504 1504 75-80% 5 186.00 $186.00 $2,797 —
1726 1726 75-80% 4 173.00 $173.00 $2,986 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1485–1625 1532 3 221.00 $221.00 $3,386 +17.10
1760 1760 2 207.00 $207.00 $3,643 —

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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.