Cattle Market Pulse

La Junta Livestock Commision Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, April 13, 2022

1,275 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest La Junta Livestock Commision report →

light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $168.91/cwt ≈ $740/hd at 438 lb · 19 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $165.64/cwt ≈ $775/hd at 468 lb · 12 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $172.36/cwt -2.64 vs last sale · ≈ $1,113/hd at 646 lb · 11 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,275 1,343 1,236
Feeder cattle 769 1,033 468
Slaughter cattle 287 310 225
Replacement cattle 219 — 543

Market comments — USDA reporter

Feeder steer's and heifer's lightly tested this week. Today's sale consisted mostly of slaughter cows and replacement stock cow's and cow calf pairs. Slaughter cows and bulls sold mostly steady. Trade and demand moderate to good.

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
343 343 7 210.00 $210.00 $720 —
420 420 2 206.00 $206.00 $865 +13.00
565 565 5 178.00 $178.00 $1,006 -4.19
646–647 646 11 168.00–174.00 $172.36 $1,113 -2.64
660–683 668 7 157.00–161.00 $159.27 $1,064 -5.83
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
370–383 379 7 200.00 $200.00 $758 +10.00
428–447 437 8 190.00–193.00 $191.87 $838 -0.59
518–545 534 5 176.00 $176.00 $940 —
571 571 4 171.00 $171.00 $976 -6.00
Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
548 548 5 166.00 $166.00 $910 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 6 186.00 $186.00 $512 —
385 385 4 175.00 $175.00 $674 —
430–441 438 19 165.00–170.00 $168.91 $740 —
451–476 468 12 165.00–167.00 $165.64 $775 —
514 514 8 164.00 $164.00 $843 —
553–555 554 6 164.00–168.00 $166.00 $920 -2.31
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
483 483 7 159.00 $159.00 $768 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
461 461 5 180.00 $180.00 $830 —
530 530 4 165.00 $165.00 $874 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1053–1152 1105 80-85% 19 82.10–84.00 $82.96 $917 —
1018–1265 1132 80-85% 18 75.00–81.00 $77.43 $877 —
1240–1245 1243 80-85% 4 82.50–84.00 $83.38 $1,036 +1.26
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
850–1270 987 85-90% 14 66.00–71.00 $66.80 $659 —
903–1235 1063 85-90% 19 72.00–77.50 $75.56 $803 —
890–1240 1117 85-90% 6 78.00–80.00 $78.89 $881 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1225–1490 1313 75-80% 11 78.00–81.00 $80.06 $1,051 —
1308–1523 1439 75-80% 16 83.00–86.50 $85.00 $1,223 +4.55
1645 1645 75-80% 1 89.00 $89.00 $1,464 ±0.00

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1500–1565 1523 3 90.00–96.00 $92.38 $1,407 —
1405–2302 2030 6 101.00–106.00 $102.96 $2,090 —

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Bred Cows

Medium 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
950–1353 1156 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 43 1,025.00–1,200.00 $1,150.84
1102–1438 1257 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 43 1,375.00–1,535.00 $1,447.14
1200–1415 1273 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 20 1,150.00–1,310.00 $1,239.37

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
924–1059 1005 (<2 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 23 1,275.00–1,400.00 $1,347.01
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
895–1020 947 (<2 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 8 1,035.00–1,125.00 $1,070.92
Medium 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
841–935 872 (<2 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 6 1,050.00–1,085.00 $1,062.50

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1075 fancy 1075 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 15 1,950.00 $1,950.00 —
929–1300 1161 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 16 1,475.00–1,650.00 $1,578.65 —
1200–1275 1215 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 5 1,310.00 $1,310.00 —

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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.