Cattle Market Pulse

Hub City Livestock Auction Market Report

Aberdeen, South Dakota · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, January 24, 2024

6,100 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Hub City Livestock Auction report →

light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $239.47/cwt +10.37 vs last sale · ≈ $1,943/hd at 811 lb · 509 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $294.07/cwt +26.80 vs last sale · ≈ $1,844/hd at 627 lb · 488 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $272.49/cwt +5.98 vs last sale · ≈ $1,825/hd at 670 lb · 460 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 6,100 1,846 6,557
Feeder cattle 6,100 1,846 6,557

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: best test on steers 550 to 599 lbs, and 650 to 749 lbs 6.00 to 10.00 higher with instances up to 15.00 higher. Best test on heifers 550 to 649 lbs 10.00 to 13.00 higher. Good to very good demand for today's large offering featuring many packages and loads with best demand seen for cattle suitable for summer grass, especially those selling in loads. Flesh varied, from light to some heavy flesh at times, but there were some very green cattle today as they have just come through the last week of very cold temperatures on lower quality feedstuffs. Lots of attractive quality cattle today, the majority of them were home raised and long time weaned. An active market with buyers and farmer feeders competing to get cattle bought. The weather has improved greatly from last weeks' sub zero temps and windchills. This week has much milder temps in the 30's with the promise of 40 degrees and warmer for the ten day outlook. This is a much needed break for livestock and their caretakers. Next feeder cattle sale is Wednesday, January 31.

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
409–445 437 58 332.50–348.00 $344.75 $1,507 —
452–482 469 92 325.00–343.00 $332.89 $1,561 -1.74
504–549 535 323 316.00–330.00 $323.45 $1,730 +24.90
540–548 547 28 302.00–307.00 $306.12 $1,674 +7.57
552 thin fleshed 552 34 325.50 $325.50 $1,797 —
556–598 565 113 296.00–319.00 $312.04 $1,763 +14.96
602–647 624 383 281.50–305.25 $299.06 $1,866 +31.79
634–648 639 105 275.50–277.00 $275.87 $1,763 +8.60
653–694 669 438 262.50–283.75 $273.19 $1,828 +6.68
681 681 22 258.50 $258.50 $1,760 -8.01
700–746 725 426 243.25–263.50 $251.73 $1,825 +9.99
756–797 771 325 234.50–255.75 $248.29 $1,914 +12.59
800–839 811 482 227.50–243.75 $240.56 $1,951 +11.46
818 818 27 220.00 $220.00 $1,800 -9.10
851–896 874 151 228.00–234.50 $231.74 $2,025 —
906–943 918 131 207.00–224.50 $217.27 $1,995 -0.11
985–999 989 150 208.75–222.25 $218.80 $2,164 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1000–1027 1021 71 206.00–222.25 $218.89 $2,235 —
1063 1063 52 212.50 $212.50 $2,259 —
1124–1142 1134 85 208.00–211.00 $209.26 $2,373 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
379 thin fleshed 379 28 329.00 $329.00 $1,247 —
392 unweaned 392 10 307.50 $307.50 $1,205 —
452–471 464 66 296.00–313.00 $305.13 $1,416 -3.87
558–583 565 46 285.00–290.00 $288.65 $1,631 +17.64
619 619 24 269.50 $269.50 $1,668 +30.50

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
326–334 329 27 326.00–330.00 $327.50 $1,077 —
366 366 8 325.00 $325.00 $1,190 +29.30
409–445 429 168 291.00–318.00 $301.27 $1,292 +12.48
453–492 481 138 298.00–318.00 $311.05 $1,496 +36.69
509 unweaned 509 30 276.00 $276.00 $1,405 —
526–540 531 47 282.50–301.00 $292.73 $1,554 +11.87
553 fancy 553 108 302.00 $302.00 $1,670 —
550–573 562 198 276.00–288.50 $284.50 $1,599 +9.25
601–643 632 213 251.00–267.00 $258.28 $1,632 +6.79
663–668 665 91 245.00–256.00 $253.37 $1,685 +19.07
700–716 710 32 203.00–214.00 $209.93 $1,491 -14.07
708–729 721 89 227.00–233.50 $230.10 $1,659 +6.10
750–770 760 60 204.00–213.00 $207.48 $1,577 -2.87
764 764 8 192.00 $192.00 $1,467 -18.35
804–846 825 111 201.50–206.00 $204.14 $1,684 +3.64
850–878 866 83 194.00–202.00 $197.58 $1,711 —
961–992 980 20 196.00–200.00 $198.43 $1,945 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350 thin fleshed 350 18 299.00 $299.00 $1,046 —
375 375 12 300.00 $300.00 $1,125 —
417 thin fleshed 417 19 284.00 $284.00 $1,184 —
472–480 475 55 278.00–285.00 $280.44 $1,332 —
559–590 579 77 254.00–264.00 $260.11 $1,506 +35.61
690 690 62 216.00 $216.00 $1,490 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1003 1003 50 204.00 $204.00 $2,046 —
1104 1104 8 194.00 $194.00 $2,142 —

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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.