Cattle Market Pulse

Creston Livestock Feeder Cattle Market Report

Creston, Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 1, 2021

2,763 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $171.76/cwt +7.92 vs last sale · ≈ $1,086/hd at 632 lb · 346 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 steers $159.46/cwt +7.12 vs last sale · ≈ $1,153/hd at 723 lb · 262 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $156.96/cwt +9.96 vs last sale · ≈ $1,205/hd at 768 lb · 224 head
HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,763 1,336 2,109
Feeder cattle 2,763 1,336 2,109

This was their "Special all Vacc Calf & Yearling Auction", featuring Nichols genetics cattle. Compared to two weeks ago steer calves under 650 lbs. were steady to 2.00 higher and the 650-750 lb. steers sold 7.00-8.00 higher. Heifer calves under 600 lbs. were 8.00 higher to sharply higher. The 600-700 lb. heifers were 10.00 higher. Demand was good for the heavy offerings. Several load lots were included in the offerings. Trade was active.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
384 unweaned 384 5 199.00 $199.00 $764
406 406 5 190.00 $190.00 $771
463–487 unweaned 471 24 176.75–202.25 $193.46 $911
450–498 484 20 174.00–190.00 $179.23 $867 +1.79
512–543 unweaned 521 29 186.75–187.75 $187.46 $977 +23.96
500–543 527 37 172.00–180.00 $175.90 $927 +2.18
567–575 unweaned 570 61 166.00–186.50 $177.81 $1,014 +11.81
551–598 579 59 172.00–182.25 $177.06 $1,025 -0.41
606–649 630 261 164.50–174.75 $172.21 $1,085 +0.88
620–648 unweaned 640 85 160.00–173.00 $170.38 $1,090 +15.30
650–677 663 171 159.50–172.00 $166.16 $1,102 +7.38
703–723 unweaned 713 43 149.00–160.50 $156.38 $1,115
702–746 725 214 156.25–166.25 $160.45 $1,163 +8.11
732 732 5 143.50 $143.50 $1,050 -8.84
755 unweaned 755 7 154.00 $154.00 $1,163
761–796 768 213 148.00–162.00 $157.21 $1,207 +10.21
785 785 4 149.00 $149.00 $1,170 +2.00
808–830 819 83 150.00–156.25 $154.29 $1,264
877–882 880 8 138.00–144.00 $141.01 $1,241 +9.01
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
481 481 8 164.00 $164.00 $789 +6.38
488 unweaned 488 6 173.00 $173.00 $844
522 unweaned 522 12 160.00 $160.00 $835
522 522 4 159.00 $159.00 $830 -1.00
607 607 4 163.00 $163.00 $989 +7.69
615–625 unweaned 622 12 155.00–157.00 $156.34 $972
690–691 691 12 152.00–154.00 $152.67 $1,055 +5.33
787–792 790 8 137.00–146.00 $141.49 $1,118
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 6 165.00 $165.00 $776
602 602 5 153.50 $153.50 $924
699 unweaned 699 11 137.50 $137.50 $961
772 772 5 140.00 $140.00 $1,081

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Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
358–386 unweaned 369 8 154.00–164.00 $160.07 $591
433 433 17 165.00 $165.00 $714 +11.00
460–487 unweaned 472 23 162.50–164.00 $163.07 $770 +22.67
462–497 483 17 159.00–169.00 $163.13 $788 +11.37
510–541 unweaned 523 85 156.00–172.00 $166.02 $868
508–541 525 61 159.00–171.00 $164.69 $865 +14.27
553–596 573 146 153.50–163.25 $156.40 $896 +8.02
557–597 unweaned 586 49 152.50–156.00 $153.45 $899
612–637 620 114 148.00–158.50 $155.10 $962 +10.11
605–633 unweaned 627 48 147.00–157.00 $149.44 $937 +13.94
652–660 unweaned 654 47 145.00–149.00 $146.32 $957
670 670 53 138.50 $138.50 $928 -0.71
661–695 679 95 145.00–156.00 $150.34 $1,021 +11.13
718–748 729 14 129.00–138.00 $134.70 $982 +4.70
765 765 52 132.00 $132.00 $1,010 -15.75
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
514 unweaned 514 5 143.50 $143.50 $738
523–546 532 15 139.50–143.00 $140.94 $750
587 587 4 143.00 $143.00 $839
624 unweaned 624 5 140.00 $140.00 $874
642 642 4 138.50 $138.50 $889
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
538 538 6 152.00 $152.00 $818 +19.06

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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.