Cattle Market Pulse

Empire Livestock Sale Market Report

Bath, New York · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, December 5, 2024

250 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Empire Livestock Sale report →

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 250 216 310
Feeder cattle — 11 —
Slaughter cattle 124 95 118

Market comments — USDA reporter

No comparison due to federal holiday. Buyer demand was moderate with a moderate supply.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1224–1466 1333 4 160.00–167.00 $164.06 $2,187 —
1382–1554 1445 8 175.00–184.00 $179.50 $2,594 —

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Feeder Heifers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
73–78 75 3 210.00–270.00 $233.36 $175 -56.64
78–79 79 2 700.00–720.00 $709.94 $561 -90.06
81–87 84 7 800.00–990.00 $910.37 $765 -18.78
87–88 88 2 210.00–260.00 $234.86 $207 -694.29
88 88 1 400.00 $400.00 $352 -529.15
90–95 93 2 250.00–270.00 $260.27 $242 -189.73
90–96 94 3 350.00–400.00 $366.01 $344 -531.76
95–98 97 2 830.00 $830.00 $805 +30.00
97 97 1 710.00 $710.00 $689 -90.00
101 101 1 840.00 $840.00 $848 +420.00
120 120 1 700.00 $700.00 $840 -139.85
1120–1216 1168 2 165.00–166.00 $165.52 $1,933 —
1332–1456 1377 4 176.00–184.00 $180.32 $2,483 +47.17

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Feeder Bulls

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
62–68 65 3 50.00 $50.00 $32 -360.13
71–77 75 5 110.00–200.00 $136.47 $102 -273.66
78 78 2 40.00–65.00 $52.50 $41 -213.37
82–86 83 3 40.00–95.00 $76.08 $63 -399.22
81–89 84 4 545.00–615.00 $567.37 $477 +467.37
83–85 84 3 900.00–1,020.00 $956.19 $803 +856.19
85–88 87 2 130.00–200.00 $164.39 $143 -790.06
87 87 1 470.00 $470.00 $409 -484.45
87 87 2 700.00–800.00 $750.00 $652 -204.45
91 91 1 800.00 $800.00 $728 +540.00
90–99 93 9 810.00–910.00 $869.49 $809 +320.22
90–99 93 3 140.00–165.00 $155.34 $144 -393.93
90–94 93 8 495.00–600.00 $568.94 $529 +19.67
94 94 1 75.00 $75.00 $70 -474.27
98–99 98 3 350.00–450.00 $400.17 $392 -54.88
101–103 102 2 840.00 $840.00 $857 +765.00
102 102 1 200.00 $200.00 $204 +125.00
101–109 105 10 520.00–600.00 $550.99 $579 -2.35
106 106 3 780.00–800.00 $793.33 $841 +239.99
109 109 1 450.00 $450.00 $490 -90.00
110–114 112 2 500.00 $500.00 $560 -274.93
115–119 117 3 450.00–475.00 $458.50 $536 -41.50
121 121 1 450.00 $450.00 $544 -50.00

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1260–1538 1378 80-85% 4 102.00–107.00 $104.59 $1,441 +3.23
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1342–1632 1487 75-80% 2 110.00–114.00 $112.20 $1,668 —
1858 1858 75-80% 1 100.00 $100.00 $1,858 +4.00
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1018–1238 1128 85-90% 2 90.00–94.00 $92.20 $1,040 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1330–1654 1540 4 145.00–150.00 $147.65 $2,274 —

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Dairy Bulls

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1030 1030 1 125.00 $125.00 $1,288 —

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Dairy Cows

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1252 1252 85-90% 1 111.00 $111.00 $1,390 —
916–1556 1298 85-90% 12 82.00–95.00 $89.49 $1,162 —
1130–1554 1356 85-90% 6 65.00–75.00 $70.25 $953 —
1076–1752 1401 80-85% 17 104.00–114.00 $108.43 $1,519 +9.59
1134–1714 1429 85-90% 15 97.00–107.00 $102.40 $1,463 +3.56
1598–2122 1768 75-80% 16 110.00–122.00 $115.11 $2,035 +17.11
1724–2128 1926 75-80% 2 101.00–108.00 $104.87 $2,020 —

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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.