Cattle Market Pulse

Lonestar Stockyards Market Report

Wildorado, Texas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, December 12, 2023

827 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Lonestar Stockyards report →

light 8-weight M&L 1 heifers $183.95/cwt -8.40 vs last sale · ≈ $1,486/hd at 808 lb · 71 head
light 7-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $201.00/cwt -3.00 vs last sale · ≈ $1,417/hd at 705 lb · 70 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $215.00/cwt -3.19 vs last sale · ≈ $1,701/hd at 791 lb · 67 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 827 1,246 1,107
Feeder cattle 715 1,176 1,060
Slaughter cattle 65 56 32
Replacement cattle 47 14 15

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steers traded mostly steady to weak. Feeder heifers traded 3.00 to 6.00 lower. Not enough comparable sales on steer or heifer calves for a market trend. Boning and Breaking Utility slaughter cows traded mostly 1.00 lower. Lean slaughter cows mostly 1.00 to 2.00 higher. Trading activity was moderate on moderate buyer demand. A cold front is moving into the area Wednesday and Thursday and is forecasted to bring some much needed moisture in the form of rain and snow.

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
275–298 283 21 312.50–320.00 $318.96 $903 —
373–379 376 8 311.00–320.00 $315.46 $1,186 +6.63
408 408 12 326.00 $326.00 $1,330 +29.00
491 491 6 276.00 $276.00 $1,355 -17.00
522 unweaned 522 3 258.00 $258.00 $1,347 —
520–532 527 10 262.00–274.00 $269.27 $1,419 -13.73
626 626 4 235.00 $235.00 $1,471 -7.34
627–648 unweaned 632 18 224.00–229.00 $226.24 $1,430 -0.62
671 unweaned 671 4 213.00 $213.00 $1,429 —
740 740 5 206.00 $206.00 $1,524 -28.55
791 791 67 215.00 $215.00 $1,701 -4.00
810 810 8 206.00 $206.00 $1,669 +4.00
903 903 2 180.00 $180.00 $1,625 -26.87
950 950 2 185.00 $185.00 $1,758 +19.43
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
543 543 4 258.00 $258.00 $1,401 +13.00
573–596 589 16 235.00–242.00 $237.67 $1,400 -2.33
776 776 4 200.00 $200.00 $1,552 —
852 852 7 185.50 $185.50 $1,580 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280 280 15 283.00 $283.00 $792 —
368 368 3 265.00 $265.00 $975 -1.71
402 402 5 248.00 $248.00 $997 -11.00
495 unweaned 495 4 225.00 $225.00 $1,114 —
505–545 528 17 225.00–240.00 $235.40 $1,243 -11.60
553–596 587 10 220.00–224.00 $223.25 $1,310 -8.60
593 unweaned 593 3 202.00 $202.00 $1,198 -13.00
630 630 23 203.00 $203.00 $1,279 -30.71
714 unweaned 714 5 188.50 $188.50 $1,346 —
713–731 719 12 195.00–196.00 $195.34 $1,404 -26.66
807–812 808 71 183.50–187.00 $183.95 $1,486 -5.58
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
447 447 5 243.00 $243.00 $1,086 +10.61
468 468 2 205.00 $205.00 $959 —
594 594 7 198.00 $198.00 $1,176 +10.47
705 705 70 201.00 $201.00 $1,417 -3.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
702 702 3 178.00 $178.00 $1,250 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
453 453 2 275.00 $275.00 $1,246 —
513 513 2 246.00 $246.00 $1,262 +26.00
621 621 4 235.00 $235.00 $1,459 —
718 718 3 178.00 $178.00 $1,278 -10.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
585 585 3 220.00 $220.00 $1,287 —
614 614 5 201.00 $201.00 $1,234 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
625 625 7 183.00 $183.00 $1,144 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1160–1520 1305 80-85% 22 85.00–90.50 $89.95 $1,174 -1.05
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1370–1695 1540 75-80% 16 85.50–92.50 $88.64 $1,365 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
805–915 860 85-90% 2 41.00–61.00 $51.64 $444 —
830–920 875 85-90% 2 75.00 $75.00 $656 —
850–955 915 85-90% 3 79.00–88.00 $83.94 $768 +2.42
1030 1030 85-90% 1 57.00 $57.00 $587 —
1005–1150 1090 85-90% 3 90.00–91.00 $90.31 $984 +9.62
1030–1195 1121 85-90% 4 72.00–82.00 $77.23 $866 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1105 1105 1 91.00 $91.00 $1,006 —
1390 1390 1 99.00 $99.00 $1,376 —

↑ Back to top

Stock Cows

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
767 767 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 36 106.00 $106.00 $813
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
815 815 (<2 yrs)Open 1 101.00 $101.00 $823
825–1155 984 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 4 100.00–107.00 $104.99 $1,033

↑ Back to top

Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
830–1205 955 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 1,200.00–1,300.00 $1,242.06

↑ Back to top

Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1000 1000 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,000.00 $2,000.00 —
1100 1100 Young (2-4 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 2,500.00 $2,500.00 +575.00

↑ Back to top

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.