Cattle Market Pulse

La Junta Livestock Commision Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 11, 2022

808 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $168.35/cwt -4.65 vs last sale · ≈ $968/hd at 575 lb · 27 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 steers $181.00/cwt -8.09 vs last sale · ≈ $827/hd at 457 lb · 14 head
HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 808 1,815 884
Feeder cattle 485 1,300 558
Slaughter cattle 293 357 76
Replacement cattle 30 158 250

Compared with last Wednesday: Feeder steer's and heifer's lightly tested. Slaughter cows 3.00 to 5.00 lower. Slaughter bulls 1.00 to 2.00 lower. Trade and demand moderate.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
563–581 575 27 167.00–169.00 $168.35 $968 -4.65
748 748 4 141.00 $141.00 $1,055
758 758 4 139.00 $139.00 $1,054
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
452–464 457 14 181.00 $181.00 $827 -8.09
1061 1061 7 124.00 $124.00 $1,316

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
361 361 6 172.00 $172.00 $621
433 433 5 169.00 $169.00 $732
531 531 6 160.00 $160.00 $850 +3.00
600–610 604 8 151.00–154.00 $152.86 $923
737 737 9 143.50 $143.50 $1,058
813 813 3 138.00 $138.00 $1,122
925 925 9 125.00 $125.00 $1,156

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Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
617 617 5 151.00 $151.00 $932

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Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1270–1840 1499 75-80% 23 65.00–72.50 $70.48 $1,056
1200–1824 1568 75-80% 85 73.00–79.00 $76.75 $1,203
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1190–1385 1273 80-85% 22 61.00–67.00 $65.18 $830 -14.00
1100–1382 1297 80-85% 24 69.00–75.00 $69.86 $906 -9.32
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
765–1295 1047 85-90% 16 51.00–61.00 $58.09 $608
1005–1075 1050 85-90% 3 68.00–75.00 $71.02 $746 +1.30
947–1285 1065 85-90% 15 63.00–67.00 $64.31 $685 -5.41

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YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1445–2385 1845 4 88.00–93.00 $90.01 $1,661
1800–2295 1983 10 94.00–99.00 $96.67 $1,917 -15.68

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Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
983–1203 1075 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 9 1,050.00–1,125.00 $1,106.74
1201 1201 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 4 1,110.00 $1,110.00

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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.