Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, August 21, 2023

1,289 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $245.22/cwt ≈ $1,780/hd at 726 lb · 148 head

light 9-weight M&L 1 steers $225.23/cwt -14.02 vs last sale · ≈ $2,045/hd at 908 lb · 121 head

heavy 9-weight M&L 1 steers $230.38/cwt +11.38 vs last sale · ≈ $2,265/hd at 983 lb · 112 head

Receipts

Head	This sale	Last sale	Last year
Total receipts	1,289	3,599	9,644
Feeder cattle	862	1,366	6,418
Slaughter cattle	427	2,233	3,226

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, choice steers and heifers sold 3.00 to 4.00 higher. Feeder steers and heifers overall sold on a light supply this week, however a lower 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 $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
518	518	3	297.00	$297.00	$1,538	+8.05
546 unweaned	546	8	271.00	$271.00	$1,480	-11.00
551	551	14	275.00	$275.00	$1,515	-31.21
708–745	736	20	251.50–256.00	$252.53	$1,859	-21.61
762–776	763	43	241.00–251.75	$250.73	$1,913	+2.00
808	808	19	253.50	$253.50	$2,048	+0.75
865	865	100	238.50	$238.50	$2,063	-9.20
903–927	908	121	224.50–227.50	$225.23	$2,045	-14.02
962–987	983	112	227.25–231.00	$230.38	$2,265	+11.38

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
910–1225	1038	5	157.50–162.50	$159.69	$1,658	—
1125–1180	1153	2	130.00–174.00	$151.48	$1,747	—
1125–1620	1362	39	173.00–189.00	$181.24	$2,468	+25.36
1194–1608	1393	132	184.50–195.00	$190.46	$2,653	+34.58

Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1033	1033	20	217.50	$217.50	$2,247	—
1053–1058	1054	73	200.50–223.00	$219.29	$2,311	—
1316	1316	4	180.50	$180.50	$2,375	—

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
505	505	3	250.00	$250.00	$1,262	-15.00
562	562	3	229.00	$229.00	$1,287	-46.00
693	693	3	221.00	$221.00	$1,532	—

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
442	442	5	250.00	$250.00	$1,105	—
480	480	3	253.00	$253.00	$1,214	-2.00
549	549	7	266.00	$266.00	$1,460	-27.19
589	589	15	254.00	$254.00	$1,496	-26.40
601	601	13	241.00	$241.00	$1,448	-37.71
680	680	7	240.00	$240.00	$1,632	-22.48
713–743	726	148	234.00–255.00	$245.22	$1,780	—
759	759	7	241.00	$241.00	$1,829	+6.32
912	912	5	229.25	$229.25	$2,091	+27.25
969–993	980	9	214.00–222.00	$217.60	$2,132	—

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
920–937	931	3	152.50–154.00	$153.51	$1,429	—
1000–1545	1214	29	177.00–189.00	$184.95	$2,245	+8.03
1070–1490	1300	75	185.00–196.00	$191.74	$2,493	+4.38

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	Δ last sale
223	223	3	960.00	$960.00	—
324	324	6	1,025.00	$1,025.00	—
369 unweaned	369	7	1,010.00	$1,010.00	—
378	378	9	900.00	$900.00	—

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
496	496	4	237.00	$237.00	$1,176	—
582 unweaned	582	6	233.00	$233.00	$1,356	—
841	841	4	215.00	$215.00	$1,808	—

Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1020–1049	1035	8	204.00–219.50	$211.86	$2,193	+23.86
1155	1155	3	178.75	$178.75	$2,065	+23.75

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1200–1865	1414	75-80%	7	113.00–117.50	$115.78	$1,637	—
1300–2150	1582	75-80%	15	119.00–129.00	$123.96	$1,961	—
1805–1980	1893	75-80%	2	110.00	$110.00	$2,082	—

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1025–1180	1103	80-85%	2	115.00–116.00	$115.46	$1,274	—
1025–1475	1242	80-85%	9	104.00–111.00	$106.81	$1,327	+0.60
1255–1420	1345	80-85%	4	95.00–99.00	$96.52	$1,298	—

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1080–1125	1103	85-90%	2	60.00	$60.00	$662	-33.40
1105–1325	1237	85-90%	7	80.00–100.00	$92.86	$1,149	—

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Dressing	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1595–2015	1766	65-75%	6	129.50–134.00	$131.46	$2,322	—

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb)	Avg wt	Head	Price range	Avg $	≈ $/hd	Δ last sale
1120	1120	1	121.00	$121.00	$1,355	—
1408–1895	1600	9	132.00–142.00	$136.41	$2,183	—
1225–2255	1786	11	112.00–129.00	$121.67	$2,173	—

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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.