Cattle Market Pulse

Iowa Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

Iowa · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, December 29, 2025

8,317 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 steers $385.85/cwt +14.41 vs last sale · ≈ $2,786/hd at 722 lb · 808 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $371.84/cwt +19.88 vs last sale · ≈ $2,484/hd at 668 lb · 708 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $400.96/cwt +6.59 vs last sale · ≈ $2,735/hd at 682 lb · 695 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Head itemized in priced lots 8,317 — —

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
298 298 3 630.00 $630.00 $1,877 —
364–383 369 19 520.00–590.00 $570.88 $2,107 +25.88
407–446 421 103 470.00–560.00 $529.13 $2,228 +36.49
460–499 479 93 475.00–520.00 $506.47 $2,426 +29.20
501–549 523 218 432.50–508.00 $472.45 $2,471 +1.54
556–596 574 342 433.00–484.00 $455.83 $2,616 +10.42
600–649 626 402 400.00–446.50 $423.85 $2,653 +2.39
651–698 682 695 371.00–427.50 $400.96 $2,735 +7.04
700–746 722 808 359.00–409.50 $385.85 $2,786 +14.41
750–797 773 636 352.00–396.00 $371.97 $2,875 +12.44
800–848 827 507 335.00–376.25 $358.71 $2,967 +13.12
851–899 875 253 330.00–369.00 $349.53 $3,058 +12.00
901–945 931 132 325.00–356.50 $339.81 $3,164 +3.41
950–998 992 85 314.00–337.00 $329.07 $3,264 +5.40
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
427 427 8 475.00 $475.00 $2,028 +28.61
461–467 465 8 462.00–481.00 $473.93 $2,204 +32.76
512–544 531 21 423.00–448.00 $435.18 $2,311 -8.60
553–589 567 39 391.00–430.00 $413.91 $2,347 +11.54
613–644 627 33 311.00–404.00 $373.60 $2,342 +7.72
682–693 685 17 379.00–389.00 $386.03 $2,644 +24.27
706–748 730 14 367.00–371.00 $369.34 $2,696 +20.34
762–783 773 15 340.00–347.50 $344.05 $2,660 +23.41
809 809 5 321.00 $321.00 $2,597 —
981 981 4 293.00 $293.00 $2,874 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1085–1245 1179 6 215.00–230.00 $224.57 $2,648 —
1227 1227 2 227.00 $227.00 $2,785 +6.40
1180–1485 1362 15 218.50–229.00 $224.93 $3,064 -1.56
1365–1453 1433 18 224.25–226.25 $224.92 $3,223 -2.18
1436 1436 3 224.50 $224.50 $3,224 -2.60
1307–1692 1507 65 230.00–245.00 $237.96 $3,586 +10.60
1615 1615 3 226.25 $226.25 $3,654 —
1605–1715 1667 28 221.00–226.10 $225.87 $3,765 +0.80
1712–1825 1733 12 220.00–238.00 $234.18 $4,058 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1007 1007 6 330.00 $330.00 $3,323 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
240 240 3 1,525.00 $1,525.00 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
311–347 338 27 430.00–522.50 $496.82 $1,679 -13.89
370–383 374 20 474.00–530.00 $488.93 $1,829 +35.82
420 fancy 420 33 495.00 $495.00 $2,079 +13.00
400–443 432 73 464.00–503.00 $482.43 $2,084 +47.55
455–496 482 87 430.00–476.25 $458.01 $2,208 +45.26
493 unweaned 493 4 360.00 $360.00 $1,775 -15.00
500–549 527 273 378.00–437.00 $415.82 $2,191 +0.67
550–595 569 408 389.50–426.00 $404.64 $2,302 +6.59
602–647 620 405 377.00–421.00 $393.75 $2,441 -11.75
650–699 668 708 331.50–407.00 $371.84 $2,484 +19.98
702–745 722 410 315.00–370.00 $341.32 $2,464 +6.62
735–740 736 142 372.50–377.50 $375.42 $2,763 +40.72
752–790 770 298 320.00–355.00 $336.55 $2,591 +5.73
817 817 40 359.00 $359.00 $2,933 +40.13
803–849 819 138 323.00–355.00 $329.78 $2,701 +10.91
852–892 871 50 315.00–336.00 $324.91 $2,830 +8.41
960 960 3 328.00 $328.00 $3,149 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
414–445 424 25 400.00–456.00 $428.21 $1,816 +6.43
485 485 4 404.00 $404.00 $1,959 +18.43
523 523 4 390.00 $390.00 $2,040 +49.27
563–598 594 55 355.00–370.00 $367.99 $2,186 +27.43
601–644 625 42 340.00–380.00 $358.06 $2,238 +19.93
651–699 685 58 320.00–362.00 $336.96 $2,308 +23.75
728–740 734 6 312.50–324.00 $318.30 $2,336 +16.19
770–791 783 11 289.00–295.00 $291.14 $2,280 —
829 829 6 316.00 $316.00 $2,620 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1075–1133 1098 8 209.00–234.00 $218.69 $2,401 -1.68
1035–1195 1164 13 222.00–228.00 $226.81 $2,640 —
1040–1590 1316 17 217.00–229.00 $225.29 $2,965 +7.77
1319–1475 1351 10 221.50–223.50 $222.89 $3,011 -3.27
1135–1635 1379 157 225.35–244.00 $237.25 $3,272 +11.09
1442 1442 2 225.25 $225.25 $3,248 -1.70

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
621 unweaned 621 5 365.00 $365.00 $2,267 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1205–1505 1375 75-80% 14 167.00–186.00 $176.11 $2,422 +4.33
1230–1765 1487 75-80% 22 160.00–176.00 $168.83 $2,511 —
1325–1970 1638 75-80% 8 177.50–190.00 $182.70 $2,993 +4.06
1485–2025 1659 75-80% 7 143.00–151.00 $147.93 $2,454 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1000–1300 1161 80-85% 18 150.00–230.00 $171.12 $1,987 -1.53
1020–1670 1256 80-85% 26 145.00–165.00 $153.67 $1,930 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
880–990 929 85-90% 4 120.00–140.00 $129.90 $1,207 —
1020–1750 1342 85-90% 30 117.50–145.00 $135.39 $1,817 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
890 890 1 100.00 $100.00 $890 —
1330–1595 1486 4 105.00–154.00 $141.62 $2,104 —
1455–2150 1896 9 181.00–206.00 $195.81 $3,713 +19.12
1560–2210 1939 7 210.00–229.00 $216.18 $4,192 —

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Beef/Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1605 1605 2 228.50 $228.50 $3,667 —

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Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1515–1615 1565 2 210.00–214.00 $211.94 $3,317 —

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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.