Cattle Market Pulse

Laurens Livestock Exchange Market Report

Laurens, South Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, January 17, 2024

243 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Laurens Livestock Exchange report →

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 243 282 283
Feeder cattle 130 133 166
Slaughter cattle 48 68 56
Replacement cattle 14 20 16

Market comments — USDA reporter

No comparisons made this week on all classes of feeder cattle due to limited comparable sales. Slaughter cows were 4.00 higher, slaughter bulls were steady. There was an average offering of average to plain quality cattle with active buyer participation.

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
285 285 2 280.00–295.00 $287.50 $819 +27.50
315 315 1 280.00 $280.00 $882 +17.00
340 fancy 340 1 307.50 $307.50 $1,046 —
365 fancy 365 1 305.00 $305.00 $1,113 —
400–420 fancy 410 2 300.00–302.50 $301.28 $1,235 —
475–495 485 2 245.00–260.00 $252.35 $1,224 —
525 525 1 250.00 $250.00 $1,312 —
568 568 3 235.00 $235.00 $1,335 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380 380 1 260.00 $260.00 $988 +10.00
540 540 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,080 —
575 575 1 225.00 $225.00 $1,294 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
625 625 2 180.00 $180.00 $1,125 —
690 690 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,242 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 1 220.00 $220.00 $528 -7.45
247 value added 247 3 240.00 $240.00 $593 —
325–337 334 4 220.00–225.00 $221.22 $739 -16.78
420–445 433 2 205.00–210.00 $207.57 $899 -2.43
485 485 2 205.00–210.00 $207.50 $1,006 +0.01
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
230 230 1 207.50 $207.50 $477 +9.95
285 285 1 220.00 $220.00 $627 —
305–345 325 2 200.00–210.00 $204.69 $665 +2.77
350–385 365 3 200.00–205.00 $201.60 $736 -5.88
565–595 585 3 190.00–195.00 $191.61 $1,121 +6.61
600 600 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,140 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
385 385 2 190.00–192.50 $191.25 $736 —
485–495 490 2 185.00 $185.00 $906 +9.97
550–590 570 2 180.00 $180.00 $1,026 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–340 fancy 330 2 300.00 $300.00 $990 —
340 340 1 280.00 $280.00 $952 —
350 350 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,015 —
385 fancy 385 1 297.50 $297.50 $1,145 —
415 fancy 415 1 292.50 $292.50 $1,214 —
545 545 1 220.00 $220.00 $1,199 —
550 550 1 217.50 $217.50 $1,196 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
220 220 1 240.00 $240.00 $528 —
270 270 1 210.00 $210.00 $567 -31.82
495 495 1 212.50 $212.50 $1,052 -7.50
510–530 518 3 210.00–225.00 $214.92 $1,113 +10.61
565 565 2 205.00 $205.00 $1,158 -1.01
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
225 225 1 220.00 $220.00 $495 —
340 340 1 200.00 $200.00 $680 —
540 540 1 182.50 $182.50 $986 +2.50
610–630 621 4 180.00–185.00 $182.51 $1,133 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1005–1330 1126 80-85% 15 94.00–119.00 $107.98 $1,216 —
1105–1215 1160 80-85% 2 81.00–87.00 $84.14 $976 +0.64
1340 1340 80-85% 1 125.00 $125.00 $1,675 +9.07
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
690–920 818 85-90% 4 70.00–85.00 $77.66 $635 -4.89
705–995 857 85-90% 8 90.00–112.00 $96.57 $828 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1485–1560 1510 75-80% 3 100.00–118.00 $107.62 $1,625 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1730–1865 1798 2 124.00–125.00 $124.52 $2,239 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1000–1145 1073 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 1,160.00–1,330.00 $1,250.75
Small 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
715–800 758 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 775.00–880.00 $830.45

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Bred Cows

Small 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
725 725 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 775.00 $775.00
690–990 873 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 750.00–895.00 $849.26
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
970–990 980 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 985.00–1,050.00 $1,017.83
Small 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
645–750 698 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 550.00–575.00 $563.44

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Barrows & Gilts

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
140 140 1 77.50 $77.50 $108 —

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Bucks Billies

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
70 70 8 80.00–90.00 $86.25 -32.08
70 70 3 150.00–160.00 $156.67 +38.34
100 100 2 110.00–120.00 $115.00 -33.33

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Small 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
700–840 770 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 2 950.00–1,085.00 $1,023.64 —

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Kids

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
30 30 4 75.00–85.00 $81.25 +7.92
30 30 3 30.00 $30.00 -43.33
40 40 3 110.00 $110.00 -25.00
50 50 2 125.00–135.00 $130.00 -40.00

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Nannies Does

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
50 50 2 95.00–100.00 $97.50 +42.50
50 50 4 135.00–140.00 $137.50 +82.50
70 70 4 160.00–170.00 $163.75 +8.75
100 100 1 150.00 $150.00 -17.50
100 100 3 180.00–200.00 $186.67 +19.17
150 150 1 270.00 $270.00 —

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Sows

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
415 415 1 65.00 $65.00 $270 —
490 490 1 30.00 $30.00 $147 —
505 505 1 68.00 $68.00 $343 +25.50

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Wethers

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
60 60 1 155.00 $155.00 —
80 80 1 180.00 $180.00 —
100 100 2 200.00–210.00 $205.00 —
100 100 1 100.00 $100.00 —

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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.