Cattle Market Pulse

La Junta Livestock Commision Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 13, 2023

2,845 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 heifers $215.19/cwt ≈ $1,222/hd at 568 lb · 204 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $259.10/cwt ≈ $1,474/hd at 569 lb · 190 head
light 6-weight M&L 2 steers $216.68/cwt -0.22 vs last sale · ≈ $1,365/hd at 630 lb · 110 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,845 3,369 2,985
Feeder cattle 2,641 2,940 2,473
Slaughter cattle 182 256 512
Replacement cattle 22 173 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Trade activity and demand was moderate. Feeder steers sold steady with a slightly lower tone noticed. Feeder heifers under 700lbs sold steady and over 700lbs sold 2.00 higher. Slaughter cows and bulls sold steady to 2.00 higher across all weight classes. The next feeder calf and slaughter cow sale will be next Wednesday December 20, 2023.

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
339–348 343 29 301.00–306.00 $303.41 $1,041 —
420–431 424 23 290.00–302.00 $297.23 $1,260 —
453–493 479 87 276.00–284.00 $280.10 $1,342 —
548 548 37 275.00 $275.00 $1,507 —
556–574 569 190 254.00–271.00 $259.10 $1,474 —
755–775 764 62 201.00–209.50 $204.08 $1,559 —
808–835 823 9 196.00–199.00 $197.31 $1,624 —
870–882 877 16 191.00–193.00 $191.87 $1,683 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
276 276 5 286.00 $286.00 $789 -20.72
335 335 4 271.00 $271.00 $908 -38.63
374–395 378 11 271.00–286.00 $277.72 $1,050 -28.80
400–439 422 30 251.00–270.00 $257.39 $1,086 -24.29
450–496 482 42 231.00–255.00 $249.12 $1,201 -23.58
510–549 544 26 226.00–242.00 $229.99 $1,251 -23.52
573–593 590 25 216.00–221.00 $216.78 $1,279 -18.55
603–646 630 110 204.00–225.00 $216.68 $1,365 -0.22
653–693 668 42 191.00–209.00 $200.36 $1,338 -9.01
705–749 725 13 200.00–201.00 $200.48 $1,453 +0.18
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
308–340 317 15 290.00–299.00 $292.41 $927 -28.59
381 381 18 296.00 $296.00 $1,128 -29.51
403–434 432 32 281.00 $281.00 $1,214 —
456–498 491 32 268.00–273.00 $269.76 $1,325 —
514 514 12 255.00 $255.00 $1,311 -17.44
555–584 574 59 230.00–241.00 $236.20 $1,356 -18.49
600 600 5 237.00 $237.00 $1,422 —
771 771 20 191.00 $191.00 $1,473 —
980–998 996 18 175.00–177.00 $176.78 $1,761 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 2 281.00 $281.00 $941 —
429 429 21 250.00 $250.00 $1,072 —
480–486 484 10 246.00–251.00 $247.49 $1,198 -38.51
510 510 11 241.00 $241.00 $1,229 —
628 628 6 208.00 $208.00 $1,306 —
719 719 10 212.00 $212.00 $1,524 —
Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
336 336 5 250.00 $250.00 $840 -7.00
458–492 467 11 224.00–229.00 $225.44 $1,053 -24.56

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
385 385 4 265.00 $265.00 $1,020 —
433–448 440 30 241.00–251.00 $249.08 $1,096 -20.52
456–480 466 76 236.00 $236.00 $1,100 -4.70
509–533 521 10 230.00–234.00 $231.95 $1,208 -3.55
552–592 568 204 211.00–216.00 $215.19 $1,222 —
610–649 625 40 208.00–212.00 $209.91 $1,312 —
698 698 22 203.00 $203.00 $1,417 -5.00
712 712 11 171.00 $171.00 $1,218 -10.00
776 776 4 191.00 $191.00 $1,482 +7.01
832 832 24 184.00 $184.00 $1,531 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
404–425 412 32 261.00–268.00 $265.20 $1,093 —
456–492 469 17 242.00–246.00 $244.14 $1,145 —
509–533 530 60 239.00–240.00 $239.92 $1,272 —
553 553 20 233.00 $233.00 $1,288 —
677 677 9 215.00 $215.00 $1,456 —
705–726 719 57 191.00–199.00 $195.77 $1,408 +1.77
763 763 11 205.00 $205.00 $1,564 +1.00
870–898 888 28 172.00–176.00 $174.81 $1,552 —
978 978 4 172.00 $172.00 $1,682 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
307–349 330 32 240.00–265.00 $254.82 $841 -14.49
360–393 380 43 231.00–251.00 $244.86 $930 -27.16
405–445 430 42 211.00–239.00 $226.21 $973 -27.20
454–499 481 32 225.00–231.00 $227.40 $1,094 +0.79
506–548 530 23 211.00–221.00 $215.97 $1,145 -10.40
587 587 5 201.00 $201.00 $1,180 -3.91
609–636 624 28 179.00–200.00 $194.23 $1,212 -9.07
655–660 656 28 191.00–198.00 $196.49 $1,289 +5.09
788–798 793 4 176.00 $176.00 $1,396 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380 380 10 226.00 $226.00 $859 —
461 461 5 226.00 $226.00 $1,042 —
508 508 3 221.00 $221.00 $1,123 —
585 585 9 205.00 $205.00 $1,199 -8.50
660 660 15 209.00 $209.00 $1,379 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
496 496 12 200.00 $200.00 $992 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
743 743 85-90% 14 55.00 $55.00 $409 —
790–1125 976 85-90% 26 71.00–81.00 $78.31 $764 —
868–1270 1133 85-90% 57 84.00–88.50 $87.74 $994 +1.24
1144–1240 1151 85-90% 14 91.00 $91.00 $1,047 -5.82
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1516–1630 1529 75-80% 18 92.50–96.50 $95.94 $1,467 +6.91
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1747 1747 65-75% 16 97.00 $97.00 $1,695 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1320–1329 1328 80-85% 9 86.00–86.75 $86.67 $1,151 —
1300–1470 1385 80-85% 2 81.00–84.50 $82.64 $1,145 -7.49
1365–1457 1434 80-85% 4 92.00–99.00 $97.33 $1,396 +4.61

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1070–1250 1160 2 111.00–125.00 $118.54 $1,375 —
1250–1560 1405 2 101.00–106.00 $103.78 $1,458 —
1405–1750 1577 5 91.00–96.50 $93.73 $1,478 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
735 735 (<2 yrs)Open 1 101.00 $101.00 $742
833–1210 926 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 7 104.00–114.00 $109.00 $1,009
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1029 1029 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 7 161.00 $161.00 $1,657

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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.