Cattle Market Pulse

Cattlemen's Livestock Auction Market Report

Dalhart, Texas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, August 20, 2026

1,445 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 8-weight M&L 1 heifers $298.00/cwt +13.00 vs last sale · ≈ $2,485/hd at 834 lb · 87 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $330.50/cwt ≈ $2,280/hd at 690 lb · 75 head
light 9-weight M&L 1 heifers $297.00/cwt ≈ $2,679/hd at 902 lb · 72 head
Dalhart 6-weight heifers brought $334/cwt, trading $5/cwt below the TX average ($339) and $27/cwt under Giddings. The class is down $31/cwt from its early July peak of $367. What this means — computed from this report and its neighbors

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,445 1,827 2,629
Feeder cattle 1,080 1,614 1,824
Slaughter cattle 365 213 805

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: There were no comparable sales on calves and feeders to determine a trend. Slaughter cattle remained mostly steady. Overall, this week was largely mono-tone. With the recent declines on the board and the heat wave continuing in the south central states for the foreseeable future, there wasn't much demand or excitement amongst the buyers. There were a few groups of better quality yearlings but the offering was largely to the plainer side.

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
336 thin fleshed 336 8 570.00 $570.00 $1,915 —
514 514 8 390.00 $390.00 $2,005 —
651–689 670 14 356.00–360.00 $357.94 $2,398 -27.06
834 834 15 336.50 $336.50 $2,806 +1.50
859 859 61 330.00 $330.00 $2,835 +6.54
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
341 unweaned 341 14 416.00 $416.00 $1,419 —
409 unweaned 409 8 367.50 $367.50 $1,503 —
465 465 3 357.50 $357.50 $1,662 —
552 552 5 377.50 $377.50 $2,084 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350 350 2 475.00 $475.00 $1,662 —
383 thin fleshed 383 6 450.00 $450.00 $1,724 —
433 thin fleshed 433 9 445.00 $445.00 $1,927 —
549 549 5 362.50 $362.50 $1,990 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
265 265 3 900.00 $900.00 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
298 thin fleshed 298 6 450.00 $450.00 $1,341 -107.50
351 351 36 467.50 $467.50 $1,641 —
455–467 461 58 412.50 $412.50 $1,902 -12.50
552 552 9 360.00 $360.00 $1,987 —
614–627 621 35 336.00–347.00 $342.03 $2,124 —
690 690 75 330.50 $330.50 $2,280 —
723–735 726 8 318.00 $318.00 $2,309 -9.50
760 760 13 321.00 $321.00 $2,440 +33.50
834 834 87 298.00 $298.00 $2,485 +13.00
864 864 4 280.00 $280.00 $2,419 —
902 902 72 297.00 $297.00 $2,679 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
425 425 4 342.50 $342.50 $1,456 —
428 thin fleshed 428 10 387.50 $387.50 $1,658 —
520–545 533 4 347.50 $347.50 $1,852 —
552 552 5 330.00 $330.00 $1,822 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
548 548 4 302.50 $302.50 $1,658 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420 420 2 425.00 $425.00 $1,785 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
937 937 80-85% 10 145.00 $145.00 $1,359 —
1022–1112 1079 80-85% 39 143.00–150.00 $146.46 $1,580 —
1055–1382 1331 80-85% 22 154.00–162.00 $154.29 $2,054 —
1267–1790 1678 80-85% 28 166.00–176.00 $169.70 $2,848 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1420–1469 1463 75-80% 15 175.00–178.00 $177.00 $2,590 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
986 986 85-90% 7 131.00 $131.00 $1,292 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250 1250 1 150.00 $150.00 $1,875 —
1465 1465 1 195.00 $195.00 $2,857 —
YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250 1250 1 199.00 $199.00 $2,488 —

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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.