Cattle Market Pulse

Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, March 13, 2023

5,625 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $186.56/cwt -3.61 vs last sale · ≈ $1,190/hd at 638 lb · 393 head
light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $188.76/cwt -6.06 vs last sale · ≈ $1,561/hd at 827 lb · 312 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $174.17/cwt +0.12 vs last sale · ≈ $1,333/hd at 765 lb · 285 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 5,625 9,220 8,290
Feeder cattle 5,088 7,804 6,746
Slaughter cattle 537 1,416 1,544

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, choice steers and heifers sold 1.00 to 2.00 lower. Feeder steers overall sold a light test though a lower undertone was noted. Feeder heifers under 650 lbs sold steady to 4.00 lower; over 650 lbs sold steady to 2.00 higher.

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
300–345 324 19 217.50–287.50 $263.52 $854 -7.48
365–388 379 10 220.00–257.50 $242.73 $920 -16.40
400–449 427 61 222.50–274.00 $258.14 $1,102 +13.28
473 unweaned 473 6 257.00 $257.00 $1,216 +21.07
453–495 474 113 215.00–273.00 $251.68 $1,193 +5.94
500–549 534 186 215.00–265.00 $239.26 $1,278 -4.25
555–598 570 121 208.00–242.00 $226.11 $1,289 -5.07
606 unweaned 606 4 197.00 $197.00 $1,194 —
601–648 627 173 189.00–232.00 $219.46 $1,376 +1.39
656–690 666 176 201.50–226.00 $218.15 $1,453 +4.91
700–747 718 278 170.00–211.25 $203.22 $1,459 +3.37
751–796 778 250 175.00–204.25 $197.38 $1,536 -0.58
804–848 827 312 178.00–193.10 $188.76 $1,561 -6.06
852–894 885 109 166.00–183.00 $175.26 $1,551 -14.96
907–945 916 74 162.00–168.50 $165.72 $1,518 -16.34
951–989 974 242 168.00–177.85 $176.95 $1,723 +0.39
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
985–1342 1194 20 153.50–164.00 $160.01 $1,911 +0.12
1130–1326 1280 11 137.00–159.50 $154.99 $1,984 —
1408–1510 1449 7 135.00–137.00 $135.30 $1,960 —
1125–1830 1454 41 149.50–159.50 $155.64 $2,263 -13.22
1255–1763 1468 151 156.00–172.00 $166.99 $2,451 -1.87
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
378 378 3 249.00 $249.00 $941 —
400–445 412 10 180.00–232.00 $215.79 $889 +11.33
468–495 487 11 177.50–191.00 $187.25 $912 -39.49
503–540 525 39 182.00–231.00 $212.51 $1,116 +1.09
559–591 566 28 150.00–204.00 $190.91 $1,081 -7.64
629 629 9 206.00 $206.00 $1,296 +15.29
723 723 2 150.00 $150.00 $1,084 -26.50
808 808 8 158.00 $158.00 $1,277 +11.00

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
309–340 318 14 201.00–269.00 $246.15 $783 +31.15
365–396 379 23 202.50–245.00 $223.55 $847 -3.68
405–445 425 70 195.00–240.00 $217.10 $923 +3.33
450–497 465 86 199.00–226.00 $218.94 $1,018 -4.17
506–546 530 179 184.00–227.00 $204.23 $1,082 -19.33
563 unweaned 563 3 187.00 $187.00 $1,053 +5.00
552–590 572 243 180.00–214.50 $200.18 $1,145 -0.24
602–649 638 393 169.00–201.00 $186.56 $1,190 -3.61
657 657 22 191.00 $191.00 $1,255 +8.47
650–696 671 209 170.00–198.50 $184.84 $1,240 +2.31
700–740 723 238 159.00–183.00 $177.43 $1,283 +0.40
735 735 19 181.50 $181.50 $1,334 +4.47
754–792 764 260 166.50–176.75 $174.08 $1,330 +0.03
770–793 780 25 173.00–176.75 $175.07 $1,366 +1.02
807 807 71 176.50 $176.50 $1,424 +3.51
809–844 825 88 154.00–179.00 $173.92 $1,435 +0.93
859–899 889 54 146.00–169.00 $151.91 $1,350 —
968 968 2 158.00 $158.00 $1,529 +4.00
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
945–1220 1053 10 130.00–151.00 $142.36 $1,499 —
1148–1205 1181 11 159.00–165.00 $161.38 $1,906 —
1140–1565 1229 30 139.00–161.00 $155.63 $1,913 —
1205–1580 1363 100 157.50–170.25 $166.45 $2,269 -1.88
1345–1745 1513 6 140.00–141.00 $140.19 $2,121 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305–340 323 2 181.00–192.50 $186.44 $602 +11.53
395 395 1 178.00 $178.00 $703 —
440–445 441 8 162.00–205.00 $188.18 $830 —
460–495 481 10 162.00–194.00 $180.69 $869 -7.44
520–542 534 21 166.50–184.00 $177.07 $946 -11.92
550–598 576 23 150.00–178.00 $170.75 $984 +11.09
600–625 610 10 156.00–168.00 $165.22 $1,008 -9.78
677–681 680 8 156.00–177.00 $163.85 $1,114 +6.85
730–737 736 10 146.00–164.00 $162.22 $1,194 -4.28
773–790 784 9 143.00–162.00 $149.24 $1,170 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
480 480 2 186.00 $186.00 $893 -31.50
520–523 522 4 190.00–203.00 $199.76 $1,043 —
563–570 566 7 167.00–185.00 $174.77 $989 —
670–678 675 6 160.00–162.00 $161.34 $1,089 -19.66
755 755 1 151.00 $151.00 $1,140 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1025–1745 1314 80-85% 20 82.00–87.50 $85.09 $1,118 -0.79
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1315–1430 1382 75-80% 3 97.50–100.00 $99.21 $1,371 —
1250–1805 1497 75-80% 11 90.00–96.00 $94.05 $1,408 +0.58
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
985–1405 1170 85-90% 6 75.00–80.50 $77.73 $909 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1455–1780 1595 5 60.00–84.00 $78.10 $1,246 —
1305–2125 1807 12 92.00–111.00 $102.43 $1,851 —
1905 1905 1 116.00 $116.00 $2,210 -5.58

↑ Back to top

Dairy Heifers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1060–1258 1194 4 93.00–95.00 $94.28 $1,126 —
1195–1270 1244 4 107.50–113.00 $111.55 $1,388 —
1352–1500 1389 4 105.00–113.00 $107.16 $1,488 —
1370–1575 1472 8 125.00–138.50 $134.09 $1,974 —

↑ Back to top

Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1265 1265 2 118.00 $118.00 $1,493 —
1453 1453 2 115.00 $115.00 $1,671 —
1475–1825 1578 11 140.00–160.00 $143.97 $2,272 —
1380–1622 1598 10 134.00–135.00 $134.91 $2,156 —

↑ Back to top

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.