Cattle Market Pulse

Creston Livestock Feeder Cattle Market Report

Creston, Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 9, 2020

2,789 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Creston Livestock Feeder Cattle report →

heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $142.20/cwt -4.47 vs last sale · ≈ $957/hd at 673 lb · 272 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $130.35/cwt -6.16 vs last sale · ≈ $812/hd at 623 lb · 248 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $136.69/cwt -5.76 vs last sale · ≈ $787/hd at 576 lb · 235 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,789 2,109 2,408
Feeder cattle 2,789 2,109 2,408

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week steers under 600 lbs. were mostly 2.00 lower. The exception was the 550-600 lb. steers which were 2.00 higher. Steers over 600 lbs. were mostly 1.00-5.00 lower. Heifers under 600 lbs. were mostly 5.00-10.00 lower, while the heavier heifers were 1.00-6.00 lower. Demand was moderate to good for the moderate offerings. Trading was active. This was their "All Vaccinated Calf and Yearling Sale".

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
399 unweaned 399 7 172.00 $172.00 $686 —
403–440 416 19 172.00–188.00 $183.92 $765 -1.11
457–494 473 32 165.00–174.00 $169.24 $801 -2.26
482–496 unweaned 491 22 165.50–168.00 $166.53 $818 -7.24
500–546 525 83 156.50–170.00 $164.72 $865 -2.62
518–549 unweaned 533 50 159.00–163.50 $161.43 $860 -13.07
573–594 unweaned 583 60 151.00–153.75 $152.85 $891 -2.90
569–599 587 108 155.00–166.00 $159.48 $936 +1.81
604–628 unweaned 614 28 142.00–150.00 $145.52 $893 -7.73
610–649 630 171 143.00–157.75 $150.78 $950 +0.35
653–689 unweaned 668 80 134.00–142.75 $138.70 $927 +0.13
650–696 675 192 136.25–148.75 $143.66 $970 -5.83
703–742 717 211 135.00–146.00 $142.40 $1,021 -1.34
756–791 767 207 134.50–143.85 $138.28 $1,061 -3.11
817–840 829 149 130.50–134.00 $133.27 $1,105 -3.94
864 864 10 125.50 $125.50 $1,084 —
938 938 12 127.75 $127.75 $1,198 —
1185 1185 10 100.00 $100.00 $1,185 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
538 538 6 150.00 $150.00 $807 —
588–590 589 17 135.00–147.50 $143.51 $845 —
620 unweaned 620 8 132.75 $132.75 $823 -5.85
646 646 13 138.75 $138.75 $896 -4.40
695 695 4 134.50 $134.50 $935 —
713 unweaned 713 10 128.00 $128.00 $913 -3.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370–374 371 15 145.00–154.00 $148.02 $549 —
400–413 405 13 149.00–152.00 $150.17 $608 —
412–435 unweaned 426 16 136.00–147.00 $139.99 $596 -14.01
472–499 482 55 133.50–147.50 $138.06 $665 -18.06
478–492 unweaned 489 37 140.00–144.00 $142.38 $696 -12.75
510–516 unweaned 514 24 137.00–141.00 $139.84 $719 -6.33
504–538 524 62 134.00–145.00 $139.44 $731 -9.95
551–592 unweaned 573 92 130.00–138.50 $134.29 $769 -6.47
555–594 578 143 132.00–143.00 $138.24 $799 -5.11
602 unweaned 602 19 127.50–131.00 $128.42 $773 —
605–646 625 229 122.00–135.00 $130.51 $816 -6.00
650 unweaned 650 6 124.00 $124.00 $806 -3.64
652–696 668 116 125.00–132.00 $129.32 $864 -4.67
711–748 723 69 123.00–129.25 $127.11 $919 -2.39
757 757 19 135.50 $135.50 $1,026 +8.76
787–794 789 17 125.25–126.00 $125.47 $990 -1.27
918–921 921 44 113.50–122.10 $121.32 $1,117 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420–431 426 14 131.00–136.50 $133.71 $570 —
476–495 481 14 127.75–130.00 $128.41 $618 -16.59
570–596 582 21 125.00–129.50 $127.08 $740 -5.25
597 unweaned 597 6 125.00 $125.00 $746 —
628–641 unweaned 636 12 115.00–120.00 $117.94 $750 —
644 644 5 121.00 $121.00 $779 -7.11
664–675 668 14 117.50–121.00 $118.50 $792 -14.50

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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.