Cattle Market Pulse

Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, November 2, 2020

2,883 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary report →

heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $146.39/cwt -12.02 vs last sale · ≈ $849/hd at 580 lb · 223 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $141.88/cwt -4.34 vs last sale · ≈ $878/hd at 619 lb · 157 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $141.06/cwt -3.49 vs last sale · ≈ $945/hd at 670 lb · 141 head
HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,883 10,482 7,669
Feeder cattle 2,101 7,951 6,608
Slaughter cattle 782 2,531 1,061

Compared to last week, Choice steers 2.00 higher and choice heifers 1.00 higher. Feeder steers 400/950 lbs 2.00 to 13.00 lower. Feeder heifers 400/899 lbs steady to 7.00 lower. Receipts light for the week.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300–335 323 6 187.50–200.00 $193.93 $626 +13.92
356–395 364 5 190.00 $190.00 $692 +14.38
407–445 425 19 173.00–181.00 $175.47 $746 -1.86
461–497 480 66 153.50–179.00 $161.52 $775 -11.34
504–548 530 103 143.00–158.00 $150.50 $798 -2.93
550–597 580 223 135.00–155.00 $146.39 $849 -12.40
603–645 619 157 137.00–147.00 $141.88 $878 -3.66
653–692 670 141 132.00–148.00 $141.06 $945 -2.35
702–733 713 124 129.35–143.00 $136.69 $975 -2.22
750–785 756 47 124.50–135.00 $132.25 $1,000 -6.62
800–839 820 11 116.00–132.00 $124.65 $1,022 -13.00
900–938 911 23 114.50–125.00 $122.61 $1,117 -5.47
955 955 51 124.50 $124.50 $1,189 -3.58
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250–1300 1280 3 95.50–98.00 $97.00 $1,242
1175–1376 1329 17 101.25–111.00 $103.35 $1,374
1030–1685 1451 187 98.00–111.00 $105.20 $1,526 +1.91
1277–1770 1454 39 83.50–99.00 $96.59 $1,404 -6.70
1195–1765 1459 79 88.00–104.50 $102.54 $1,496 -0.75
2150 2150 1 75.50 $75.50 $1,623
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290 290 4 161.00 $161.00 $467
363 363 7 141.50 $141.50 $514
440 440 16 154.00 $154.00 $678 -5.47
475–482 479 5 147.00–148.50 $147.59 $707 -7.80
521–539 531 15 125.00–138.50 $131.92 $700 -13.56
570–583 575 15 125.00–131.00 $129.06 $742 -11.93
626–630 628 11 130.00–131.00 $130.46 $819 +0.48
665–693 683 8 121.00–130.50 $128.08 $875 -5.40
700 700 1 125.00 $125.00 $875
894 894 5 116.00 $116.00 $1,037 +1.37

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Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340–347 345 4 154.00–159.00 $157.77 $544 -13.00
365–388 380 7 151.00–162.00 $160.20 $609 +11.20
400–443 421 80 146.00–166.25 $159.31 $671 +6.79
450–493 475 74 135.00–158.00 $144.15 $685 -7.13
500–542 524 91 126.00–149.00 $138.66 $727 -2.74
551–594 563 116 124.00–139.00 $133.63 $752 -2.02
600–648 617 123 122.50–136.00 $130.23 $804 -5.99
654–695 677 48 120.00–135.00 $130.03 $880 -1.74
705–739 722 51 123.50–134.25 $130.92 $945 +0.88
773–786 784 25 120.00–127.75 $126.41 $991 +1.27
808–842 824 7 111.50–121.50 $116.34 $959 -13.19
948 948 15 108.00 $108.00 $1,024 -15.00
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
730–1250 1030 31 97.00–121.00 $108.41 $1,117 +9.18
1045–1150 1115 3 94.00–96.00 $94.62 $1,055 +5.18
1045–1295 1170 2 90.50–95.00 $92.51 $1,082 -7.67
785–1280 1194 6 79.00–85.00 $83.40 $996
1130–1476 1276 63 93.00–104.00 $102.32 $1,306 +1.88
1123–1450 1303 207 97.00–106.00 $104.28 $1,359 +1.16
1538–1590 1555 3 97.00–100.00 $98.98 $1,539
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335–340 338 2 145.00 $145.00 $490 ±0.00
361–390 373 13 130.00–144.00 $137.53 $513 -15.47
428 428 4 136.00 $136.00 $582 -8.89
508–542 529 6 111.00–115.00 $113.30 $599 -14.71
555–585 574 11 116.00–125.00 $121.34 $696 -4.20
635–646 644 7 118.50–121.00 $118.85 $765 -7.83
680–689 688 9 116.00–118.50 $118.23 $813
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
743 743 6 119.50 $119.50 $888

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Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 1 173.00 $173.00 $683
488 488 2 144.00 $144.00 $703
550–557 554 5 130.00–135.00 $133.02 $737
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 2 128.00 $128.00 $570
547 547 3 110.00 $110.00 $602
550–578 569 3 110.00–111.00 $110.32 $628

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N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1000–1150 1056 9 81.00–85.00 $82.81 $874
1060–1505 1265 16 80.00–89.00 $84.52 $1,069
1080–1688 1338 29 70.00–79.00 $73.74 $987
1095–1660 1486 83 91.00–95.00 $92.89 $1,380 +0.29

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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.