Cattle Market Pulse

Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, March 27, 2023

5,781 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $191.54/cwt +8.18 vs last sale · ≈ $1,272/hd at 664 lb · 346 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $213.59/cwt +14.46 vs last sale · ≈ $1,222/hd at 572 lb · 269 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $223.82/cwt +13.85 vs last sale · ≈ $1,181/hd at 528 lb · 254 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 5,781 14,000 9,133
Feeder cattle 4,171 12,783 8,116
Slaughter cattle 1,610 1,217 1,017

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, choice steers and heifers sold 2.00 to 4.00 higher. Feeder steers and heifers overall sold on a light test due to a lighter amount of receipts reported this week, however a higher undertone was noted.

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
357 357 12 242.00–275.00 $261.25 $933 -3.41
378 unweaned 378 23 265.00 $265.00 $1,002 -12.00
409–449 424 82 248.00–276.00 $263.53 $1,117 +7.71
452 unweaned 452 51 266.50 $266.50 $1,205 +16.50
455–487 477 97 232.00–282.00 $266.66 $1,272 +9.36
507 fancy 507 63 269.00 $269.00 $1,364 -1.00
508–548 531 163 240.00–270.00 $250.85 $1,332 +4.64
525–544 unweaned 538 25 244.00–245.00 $244.31 $1,314 +14.07
558–592 573 234 233.00–265.00 $248.27 $1,423 +18.16
603–646 625 135 213.00–247.00 $225.66 $1,410 +4.16
650–696 670 253 209.75–231.75 $225.38 $1,510 +8.61
704–729 719 85 194.50–224.00 $208.39 $1,498 +6.14
751–780 765 137 186.00–211.25 $205.12 $1,569 +10.69
828–847 834 61 192.50–200.00 $198.42 $1,655 +7.12
863–864 864 20 180.00–194.50 $187.25 $1,618 +1.33
902–941 918 62 173.00–184.50 $181.63 $1,667 +8.59
961 961 53 177.25 $177.25 $1,703 +7.36
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
803–1190 1020 7 161.00–164.50 $163.43 $1,667 —
980–1215 1103 32 125.00–164.00 $143.16 $1,579 —
935–1240 1150 56 153.50–163.00 $158.79 $1,826 —
1280 1280 2 137.00 $137.00 $1,754 -0.21
1125–1698 1346 68 152.00–166.50 $159.89 $2,152 —
1165–1925 1477 423 161.50–177.25 $172.11 $2,542 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
530–536 534 12 227.50–232.00 $228.99 $1,223 +14.35
563–591 575 9 217.00–235.00 $226.78 $1,304 +19.23
604 604 4 200.00 $200.00 $1,208 +6.40
660–676 668 8 200.00 $200.00 $1,336 +12.53
741–745 743 12 180.00–186.00 $183.25 $1,362 -5.44
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
998 998 3 175.00 $175.00 $1,746 +13.45
1073–1086 1078 26 166.50–173.00 $168.98 $1,822 -6.36

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
330 330 15 258.00 $258.00 $851 +28.24
374 unweaned 374 22 247.50 $247.50 $926 +55.00
375–393 383 7 220.00–231.00 $224.84 $861 +9.78
411–418 unweaned 417 35 225.00–235.00 $233.87 $975 +11.64
404–448 430 134 221.00–247.00 $236.04 $1,015 +23.35
458–499 488 175 211.00–233.00 $226.54 $1,106 +6.40
498 unweaned 498 4 225.00 $225.00 $1,120 +25.00
506–546 527 239 210.00–240.00 $225.68 $1,189 +15.21
538 unweaned 538 15 187.00–205.00 $194.20 $1,045 +3.26
551–589 572 269 200.00–228.00 $213.59 $1,222 +14.17
600–646 627 173 183.00–212.50 $202.39 $1,269 +12.90
650–699 664 324 181.00–200.00 $191.00 $1,268 -15.92
665 665 22 199.50 $199.50 $1,327 -7.42
720 720 16 191.00 $191.00 $1,375 +9.40
703–746 728 199 177.00–189.25 $185.09 $1,347 +3.49
750–797 771 79 166.00–188.50 $183.21 $1,413 +4.71
760–780 779 81 183.50–184.00 $183.52 $1,430 +5.02
823 823 26 178.00 $178.00 $1,465 -11.49
812–847 844 116 167.00–173.75 $173.22 $1,462 -16.27
851–877 859 90 170.00–175.00 $171.68 $1,475 +3.79
864–870 866 46 179.00–186.00 $181.60 $1,573 +13.71
918 918 5 170.00 $170.00 $1,561 +6.91
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
953–1080 999 8 151.00–156.50 $152.93 $1,528 —
800–1136 1046 17 101.00–161.00 $148.97 $1,558 —
1020–1200 1110 26 160.00–164.00 $162.56 $1,804 +17.50
1115–1255 1170 6 135.00–142.00 $137.50 $1,609 —
1095–1440 1279 27 149.00–167.00 $158.15 $2,023 -1.41
1100–1690 1365 249 158.75–177.75 $171.98 $2,348 +2.08
1631 1631 5 156.00 $156.00 $2,544 —
1645 1645 1 132.00 $132.00 $2,171 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
483 483 7 181.00 $181.00 $874 -8.43
527–547 535 35 198.50–214.00 $204.40 $1,094 +18.43
565–599 590 28 180.00–192.00 $187.63 $1,107 +17.31
638 638 3 174.00 $174.00 $1,110 +11.02
767–774 769 13 166.00–177.50 $173.94 $1,338 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
980 980 3 163.00 $163.00 $1,597 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
383 383 3 227.50 $227.50 $871 —
528 528 3 202.50 $202.50 $1,069 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1110–1820 1393 75-80% 86 93.00–107.00 $101.66 $1,416 +0.74
1185–1765 1441 75-80% 50 99.00–117.50 $106.97 $1,541 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
890–1760 1297 80-85% 107 85.00–99.00 $92.55 $1,200 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
780–1715 1153 85-90% 43 70.00–89.00 $81.34 $938 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1115–2390 1709 20 94.00–116.00 $109.50 $1,871 —
1110–2655 1889 25 117.50–135.00 $123.36 $2,330 —

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Dairy Heifers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1005 1005 8 123.00 $123.00 $1,236 —
1605 1605 1 119.00 $119.00 $1,910 —
1680 1680 2 135.00 $135.00 $2,268 —

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Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1350–1360 1355 2 129.00 $129.00 $1,748 —
1360 1360 2 115.00–122.00 $118.50 $1,612 —
1370–1404 1384 12 134.00–138.00 $135.69 $1,878 —
1250–1660 1429 8 130.00–140.00 $135.82 $1,941 —
1245–1705 1580 13 141.00–148.00 $145.37 $2,297 -2.48
1495–1855 1709 49 138.00–148.00 $140.11 $2,394 —

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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.