Cattle Market Pulse

Miles City Livestock Commission Auction Market Report

Miles City, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, January 24, 2023

2,269 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Miles City Livestock Commission Auction report →

heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $187.47/cwt +1.05 vs last sale · ≈ $1,059/hd at 565 lb · 274 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $202.57/cwt +7.79 vs last sale · ≈ $1,043/hd at 515 lb · 210 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $185.33/cwt -1.17 vs last sale · ≈ $1,236/hd at 667 lb · 198 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,269 1,485 1,114
Feeder cattle 1,842 585 899
Slaughter cattle 322 187 149
Replacement cattle 105 713 66

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steers were too lightly tested last week to develop an accurate market trend, however unevenly steady undertones were noticed. 500-599 lbs heifers offered the best test this week as these offerings sold mostly 2.00-5.00 higher. All other heifer weights were too lightly tested last week to develop an accurate market trend, however higher undertones were noticed on heifers under 500 lbs and lower undertones were noticed on heifers over 600 lbs. Demand was mostly moderate to good for all feeders on offer. Quality this week was mixed from plain to attractive. Most offerings were weaned 45-90 days. Packages sizes were much larger this week with a few load lots on offer. A large buyer pool was on hand for todays sale. Market activity was mostly active as a result. Weigh up cows sold on mostly good demand for light to moderate offerings. All buyers showed stronger demand for cows this week as packers and feeding buyers both showed strong demand for cows. Slaughter cows sold mostly 1.00-3.00 higher on breaking and boning cows, lean cows sold 2.00-4.00 higher. Feeding cows sold mostly 2.00-4.00 higher. Cow quality was mixed this week from plain to very attractive. Weigh up conditions were mixed as well. Slaughter bulls sold generally steady in a narrow compairson. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed were too lightly tested last week to develop an accurate market trend, steady to firm undertones were noticed.

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
365–395 391 7 271.00–285.00 $272.87 $1,067 -9.61
419–446 440 37 249.50–258.00 $251.32 $1,106 +3.32
450–498 477 37 228.00–248.00 $235.99 $1,126 -4.64
500–547 523 130 219.00–228.00 $224.18 $1,172 -5.72
550–582 577 94 212.50–225.50 $216.08 $1,247 +0.64
600–644 616 134 194.00–206.00 $202.27 $1,246 -7.53
650–693 667 198 180.50–192.00 $185.33 $1,236 -1.17
700–725 708 14 176.00–182.00 $180.63 $1,279 +1.63
767–790 778 8 171.00–176.00 $173.42 $1,349 +11.42
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
380–393 385 8 252.00–257.00 $255.09 $982 —
440 440 7 240.00 $240.00 $1,056 -2.50
460–499 489 15 200.00–225.00 $214.65 $1,050 -14.93
510–542 529 15 201.00–215.50 $210.73 $1,115 -8.27
646 646 4 185.00 $185.00 $1,195 —
658–692 674 14 173.00–176.00 $174.47 $1,176 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
514–544 536 45 205.00–210.50 $209.09 $1,121 —
594 594 7 171.00 $171.00 $1,016 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
368–388 372 14 215.00–219.00 $215.89 $803 +7.39
400–441 433 70 212.50–217.00 $214.04 $927 +15.29
453–487 471 103 197.50–212.00 $206.61 $973 +12.61
500–547 515 210 192.00–209.00 $202.57 $1,043 +7.79
551–582 565 274 182.50–193.00 $187.47 $1,059 +1.94
603–631 620 56 170.00–178.00 $172.25 $1,068 -13.25
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
383 383 2 204.00 $204.00 $781 +9.00
418–423 421 5 185.00–194.00 $188.57 $794 -3.80
474–498 480 27 184.00–196.00 $188.46 $905 -2.34
588–598 595 9 177.00–178.00 $177.67 $1,057 —
642 642 8 168.50 $168.50 $1,082 —
740 740 2 159.00 $159.00 $1,177 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
498 498 6 185.00 $185.00 $921 —
637 637 39 176.25 $176.25 $1,123 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
475–484 480 17 197.00–199.00 $198.07 $951 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
622 622 9 179.00 $179.00 $1,113 —
771 771 4 129.00 $129.00 $995 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
838–994 923 85-90% 9 50.50–52.00 $51.08 $471 —
928 928 85-90% 4 51.00 $51.00 $473 —
1022 1022 85-90% 3 43.50 $43.50 $445 —
890–1224 1050 85-90% 26 58.00–65.50 $59.62 $626 —
1030–1285 1131 85-90% 16 53.00–64.50 $58.97 $667 -0.51
1140–1215 1169 85-90% 6 71.00–75.00 $73.03 $854 +8.65
835–1315 1203 85-90% 37 65.00–70.00 $68.05 $819 —
1065–1292 1206 85-90% 37 64.50–69.50 $67.21 $811 —
1160–1290 1238 85-90% 3 71.50–76.25 $73.46 $909 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1300–1510 1381 80-85% 24 71.50–76.25 $74.41 $1,028 +0.84
1230–1575 1402 80-85% 24 59.00–71.50 $67.95 $953 —
1291–1525 1431 80-85% 72 71.50–79.00 $75.13 $1,075 —
1330–1680 1449 80-85% 12 61.50–69.50 $66.63 $965 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1475 1475 75-80% 1 72.50 $72.50 $1,069 —
1570–1865 1718 75-80% 2 76.50–77.00 $76.73 $1,318 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1230–1365 1298 2 86.00–91.00 $88.37 $1,147 —
1480–1830 1628 8 93.50–99.00 $96.47 $1,571 +0.51
1435–1865 1652 7 75.00–93.00 $85.49 $1,412 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
718–950 816 (<2 yrs)Open 11 142.50–156.00 $151.36 $1,235
849–1225 1023 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 59 73.00–109.50 $90.70 $928
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
745–855 828 (<2 yrs)Open 4 127.50–128.00 $127.89 $1,059

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1142–1308 1184 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 8 850.00–975.00 $884.54
1194 1194 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 4 1,010.00 $1,010.00
1239–1257 1247 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 7 1,250.00–1,300.00 $1,278.39
1293 1293 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 4 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.