Cattle Market Pulse

Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, August 23, 2021

7,070 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $164.69/cwt -0.43 vs last sale · ≈ $1,291/hd at 784 lb · 632 head
heavy 8-weight M&L 1 steers $155.85/cwt -3.59 vs last sale · ≈ $1,351/hd at 867 lb · 538 head
light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $161.61/cwt -1.92 vs last sale · ≈ $1,337/hd at 827 lb · 477 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 7,070 2,348 3,570
Feeder cattle 5,583 1,201 2,267
Slaughter cattle 1,487 1,147 1,303

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Choice steers 1.00 higher and choice heifers 2.00 higher. Feeder steers 650 to 699 lbs 5.00 lower, 700 to 799 lbs steady to 3.00 higher, 800 to949 lbs 2.00 to 5.00 lower. Feeder heifers to few receipts last week for a market test.

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
341 341 15 225.00 $225.00 $767 —
392–399 393 21 185.00–207.00 $202.75 $797 —
411 unweaned 411 4 181.00 $181.00 $744 —
410–448 430 13 180.00–203.00 $194.68 $837 —
477 unweaned 477 3 168.00 $168.00 $801 —
451–490 483 53 175.00–186.00 $183.75 $888 —
502–549 525 83 166.00–199.70 $179.14 $940 —
530 unweaned 530 8 175.00 $175.00 $928 —
556–597 572 129 161.00–189.00 $177.03 $1,013 —
600–646 625 123 164.00–181.50 $174.78 $1,092 —
653–697 674 415 155.50–177.75 $171.26 $1,154 -5.34
700–749 728 362 156.00–174.00 $165.33 $1,204 +3.33
752–798 784 632 157.00–172.50 $164.69 $1,291 -0.43
803–848 827 477 154.00–166.25 $161.61 $1,337 -1.92
853–888 867 538 147.00–161.50 $155.85 $1,351 -3.59
909–943 934 85 144.00–155.75 $150.29 $1,404 -4.71
952–974 966 246 132.25–154.00 $149.21 $1,441 —
1012–1047 1042 68 130.00–140.00 $138.72 $1,445 —
1139 1139 14 130.50 $130.50 $1,486 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
980–1280 1107 13 107.00–127.50 $121.66 $1,347 —
1160–1369 1259 12 105.00–114.00 $107.42 $1,352 —
1240–1319 1272 25 118.00–125.00 $122.27 $1,555 —
1135–1565 1323 61 104.00–129.50 $125.19 $1,656 +4.66
1211–1655 1405 488 116.00–136.25 $129.59 $1,821 +1.46
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
430 430 5 160.00 $160.00 $688 -14.00
470–490 480 4 163.00–166.00 $164.47 $789 —
504–538 521 21 160.00–174.00 $167.04 $870 —
584 584 4 165.00 $165.00 $964 —
618–624 622 12 131.00–165.00 $145.09 $902 -12.91
660–683 677 27 154.00–162.00 $158.74 $1,075 +1.91
700–749 729 34 144.50–165.00 $157.71 $1,150 —
750–787 779 15 135.00–152.00 $144.75 $1,128 —
813–818 815 10 132.00–148.00 $141.58 $1,154 —
863–890 868 5 139.00–146.50 $144.96 $1,258 —
959–994 977 10 137.50–141.00 $139.28 $1,361 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
798 798 13 155.50 $155.50 $1,241 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
250 250 6 575.00 $575.00 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
331 331 13 185.00 $185.00 $612 —
363 363 8 202.50 $202.50 $735 —
420–449 439 3 165.00–189.00 $181.35 $796 —
452 fancy 452 40 178.00 $178.00 $805 —
453–479 467 33 160.00–173.50 $168.81 $788 —
511–547 535 110 153.00–169.00 $161.74 $865 —
551–599 575 75 154.00–169.00 $160.36 $922 —
603–648 624 202 146.00–163.50 $154.28 $963 +6.78
651–698 679 150 144.00–157.00 $151.65 $1,030 -2.78
709 709 24 158.00 $158.00 $1,120 —
705–747 725 267 139.00–156.50 $151.71 $1,100 —
763–798 775 66 144.50–153.75 $149.32 $1,157 +18.96
800–838 810 168 138.50–152.25 $147.98 $1,199 —
850–899 871 277 137.00–151.85 $144.44 $1,258 —
900–935 920 76 130.00–145.00 $137.37 $1,264 +4.37
922 thin fleshed 922 6 143.50 $143.50 $1,323 —
954–980 970 94 134.75–144.75 $141.94 $1,377 —
1003–1005 1004 5 128.50–132.50 $130.90 $1,314 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
850–1270 1085 27 95.00–124.50 $114.55 $1,243 +11.00
1010–1500 1195 71 109.00–129.50 $124.60 $1,489 —
1180–1239 1225 21 115.00–124.00 $119.43 $1,463 —
1025–1296 1250 12 101.00–109.00 $105.88 $1,324 —
1102–1545 1306 275 120.00–136.25 $129.98 $1,698 +33.72
1480–1593 1542 4 106.00–107.00 $106.24 $1,638 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
352–393 373 6 144.00–152.50 $148.48 $554 —
399 unweaned 399 7 150.00 $150.00 $598 —
408–442 420 15 151.00–156.00 $153.52 $645 —
467 unweaned 467 6 151.00 $151.00 $705 —
461–494 477 27 138.00–157.00 $151.34 $722 +10.34
511–517 512 18 131.00–156.00 $147.76 $757 —
563–599 594 16 149.00–155.00 $152.03 $903 +15.85
600–640 612 17 138.00–142.50 $140.67 $861 —
707–733 719 21 133.00–140.50 $138.00 $992 —
797–799 798 21 136.00 $136.00 $1,085 —
820–843 828 9 133.50–136.00 $134.83 $1,116 —
854–893 876 26 131.00–134.00 $131.88 $1,155 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1032 1032 6 116.50 $116.50 $1,202 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
264 264 5 500.00 $500.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200–1920 1458 75-80% 52 72.00–79.00 $75.72 $1,104 +0.31
1345–1870 1596 75-80% 17 80.00–86.00 $81.12 $1,295 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1260 1260 80-85% 1 53.00 $53.00 $668 —
1045–1760 1356 80-85% 38 62.00–71.00 $67.12 $910 +0.75
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
845–1255 1096 85-90% 9 24.00–47.00 $37.31 $409 —
1005–1560 1231 85-90% 18 50.00–61.00 $55.57 $684 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1105–1770 1325 6 56.00–72.00 $66.08 $876 -7.36
815–2430 1775 35 74.00–95.00 $83.52 $1,482 —

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Dairy Heifers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185–1281 1248 24 102.00–108.50 $106.14 $1,325 —
1195–1308 1268 14 93.00 $93.00 $1,179 —
1358–1464 1378 44 111.00–116.00 $111.80 $1,541 —
1410 1410 4 85.00 $85.00 $1,198 —

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Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1272–1324 1312 19 105.00–115.75 $108.41 $1,422 —
1405 1405 1 105.00 $105.00 $1,475 —
1185–1490 1418 12 82.00–112.00 $100.49 $1,425 —
1438–1484 1476 18 111.50–117.00 $112.10 $1,655 —
1225–1675 1509 25 113.50–118.50 $115.98 $1,750 —

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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.