Cattle Market Pulse

Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, August 19, 2024

5,878 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 8-weight M&L 1 heifers $222.63/cwt -0.37 vs last sale · ≈ $1,944/hd at 873 lb · 365 head
light 8-weight M&L 1 heifers $225.15/cwt -5.33 vs last sale · ≈ $1,860/hd at 826 lb · 353 head
light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $244.45/cwt -8.46 vs last sale · ≈ $2,007/hd at 821 lb · 298 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 5,878 4,150 1,289
Feeder cattle 3,733 2,706 862
Slaughter cattle 2,145 1,444 427

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steers and heifers 10.00 to 15.00 lower. Moderate to good demand for yearling steers and heifers, however the optimism that was running so high amongst cattle feeders has been replaced with uncertainty. Cash fed cattle traded lower at midweek, 188.00 and went even lower as the week ended, 183.00-184.00. The downturn in the CME Live Cattle futures complex has caught cattle producers and cattle feeders totally off guard as the months where market ready cattke are historically the tightest, are lower than the front month of August. There has not been a big rush to sell yearlings, unless feed supplies are short, as the futures are 20.00 lower than where they were all summer.

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
333 333 3 342.50 $342.50 $1,141 -42.50
402 402 11 340.00 $340.00 $1,367 +3.07
466–495 480 31 290.00–312.00 $299.12 $1,436 -20.38
507–516 512 11 280.00–285.00 $282.25 $1,445 -40.10
560–595 581 17 277.00–289.00 $283.40 $1,647 -13.95
600–645 615 117 267.00–286.00 $276.10 $1,698 -17.37
662–687 680 101 250.00–282.75 $270.18 $1,837 -14.38
711–743 734 84 253.00–263.75 $259.26 $1,903 -12.58
776–799 781 208 243.00–254.00 $249.14 $1,946 -14.07
800–844 821 298 240.00–250.50 $244.45 $2,007 -7.45
856–886 877 173 230.75–245.10 $235.08 $2,062 -21.58
902–936 927 250 215.00–234.25 $231.69 $2,148 -12.28
998 998 3 206.00 $206.00 $2,056 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
940–1285 1131 22 170.00–188.00 $180.10 $2,037 —
1203 1203 3 186.50 $186.50 $2,244 -5.62
1080–1435 1260 68 175.00–189.75 $184.18 $2,321 —
1038–1560 1338 182 174.00–187.50 $181.70 $2,431 —
1277–1405 1352 18 185.50–190.35 $188.39 $2,547 —
1200–1498 1416 188 182.00–192.00 $184.83 $2,617 -11.18
1240–1660 1430 356 182.00–193.25 $186.79 $2,671 -9.22
1522–1527 1524 9 189.00–190.50 $190.00 $2,896 -3.09
1518–1530 1527 8 183.00–186.50 $185.63 $2,835 -7.46
1586 1586 8 176.50 $176.50 $2,799 -16.84
1545–1720 1612 12 181.00–188.50 $184.44 $2,973 —
1665 1665 1 187.00 $187.00 $3,114 -5.32
1640–1940 1744 4 174.00–179.00 $176.71 $3,082 -20.72
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
493 493 15 273.00 $273.00 $1,346 -22.00
693 693 50 241.50 $241.50 $1,674 -37.50
715 unweaned 715 3 231.00 $231.00 $1,652 —
724 724 7 242.00 $242.00 $1,752 -12.00
814 814 16 235.25 $235.25 $1,915 —
937 937 6 214.00 $214.00 $2,005 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1014 1014 7 219.50 $219.50 $2,226 +5.50
1148 1148 3 194.00 $194.00 $2,227 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
426 426 3 278.00 $278.00 $1,184 -50.64
487–489 488 10 270.00–283.00 $277.81 $1,356 -40.55
501–541 512 36 268.00–276.00 $274.13 $1,404 -3.90
560–595 580 81 247.00–265.00 $251.56 $1,459 -25.24
603–639 624 62 251.00–256.50 $252.59 $1,576 -7.10
656–697 683 104 232.00–248.75 $242.62 $1,657 -12.77
692 fancy 692 29 252.00 $252.00 $1,744 —
710–746 734 278 230.00–240.00 $235.36 $1,728 -13.08
754–798 776 237 226.00–241.25 $230.00 $1,785 -12.12
804–848 826 353 221.75–234.00 $225.15 $1,860 -5.33
855–885 873 365 217.50–234.00 $222.63 $1,944 -0.37
924–939 932 133 214.50–227.00 $215.62 $2,010 —
983 983 38 220.25 $220.25 $2,165 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
875–1140 1032 13 160.00–187.00 $176.56 $1,822 —
1085–1281 1243 56 179.50–192.00 $183.52 $2,281 —
1067–1525 1258 131 175.00–187.50 $182.65 $2,298 -9.85
1265–1290 1285 11 183.00–183.50 $183.41 $2,357 -9.09
1193–1473 1296 25 175.00–181.00 $179.02 $2,320 -13.48
1152–1590 1317 363 182.75–191.50 $187.20 $2,465 -1.55
1270–1384 1356 18 184.50–189.75 $187.76 $2,546 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1025–1037 1032 7 191.00–195.00 $192.70 $1,989 -4.80
1056 1056 4 184.50 $184.50 $1,948 +34.50
1101 1101 38 207.50 $207.50 $2,285 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
493 493 5 263.00 $263.00 $1,297 —
541 541 3 260.00 $260.00 $1,407 -5.00
795 795 5 218.00 $218.00 $1,733 —
831 831 13 217.25 $217.25 $1,805 —
968 968 4 206.00 $206.00 $1,994 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
386 386 6 315.00 $315.00 $1,216 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1100–1415 1273 75-80% 16 130.00–166.00 $145.60 $1,853 —
1205–1965 1412 75-80% 49 132.00–143.00 $138.47 $1,955 —
1200–1640 1469 75-80% 5 121.50–128.50 $124.97 $1,836 —
1300–1950 1496 75-80% 37 142.50–159.00 $148.18 $2,217 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
810–990 916 80-85% 10 120.00–145.00 $126.67 $1,160 —
1035–1280 1143 80-85% 18 134.00–170.00 $141.02 $1,612 —
1005–1595 1250 80-85% 32 120.00–133.00 $126.53 $1,582 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
855–975 926 85-90% 7 100.00–116.00 $107.01 $991 -5.57
845–1220 1024 85-90% 4 80.00–92.50 $88.63 $908 —
1005–1645 1163 85-90% 24 96.00–120.00 $111.01 $1,291 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
970–1290 1140 7 134.00–181.00 $153.50 $1,750 —
1405–1655 1558 4 65.00–115.00 $88.19 $1,374 —
1355–2345 1713 34 128.00–169.00 $156.09 $2,674 —
1020–2140 1778 18 165.00–193.00 $178.65 $3,176 —

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Beef Dairy Heifers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1445 1445 2 183.75 $183.75 $2,655 —

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Beef Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1308–1568 1397 9 176.00–181.00 $178.45 $2,493 —

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Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1155–1425 1290 2 134.50–146.00 $140.85 $1,817 —
1220–1700 1445 30 155.00–171.00 $164.49 $2,377 —
1370–1690 1551 27 170.00–178.75 $173.88 $2,697 —
1735–1995 1874 6 157.00–165.00 $160.66 $3,011 —

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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.