Cattle Market Pulse

Mitchell Livestock Auction Market Report

Mitchell, South Dakota · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, December 17, 2020

5,036 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Mitchell Livestock Auction report →

heavy 8-weight M&L 1 heifers $127.14/cwt -0.89 vs last sale · ≈ $1,114/hd at 876 lb · 501 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $165.70/cwt +5.93 vs last sale · ≈ $957/hd at 577 lb · 283 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $140.67/cwt +4.21 vs last sale · ≈ $951/hd at 676 lb · 267 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 5,036 6,547 5,374
Feeder cattle 5,036 6,547 5,374

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: A higher undertone was noted on steers up to 650 lbs. steers 650-900 lbs. were 2.00-8.00 higher, steers 950-1100 were steady to 7.00 higher. On heifers a higher undertone was noted on calves up to 650 lbs. heifers 650-800 lbs. were steady to 4.00 higher, 800-850 were 2.00 lower. Heifers 850 lbs. and up were steady to 2.00 higher. Demand was good. Some load lots in the yearlings today. The first feeder cattle auction in 2021 will be on , Sat. Jan. 2nd, expecting 4000 head plus, starting at 9:00 am. Then on Jan. 7th we will start our Thursday auctions. "Merry Christmas" and Happy New Year!

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
313–346 337 25 189.00–195.00 $190.56 $642 —
370–399 382 37 185.00–197.50 $192.23 $734 +9.23
459–474 thin fleshed 462 36 190.00–192.50 $192.00 $887 —
452–486 465 112 178.00–188.00 $183.72 $854 +7.13
503–544 525 114 170.50–184.25 $175.10 $919 +6.69
554 thin fleshed 554 8 171.00 $171.00 $947 —
553–592 578 275 157.00–173.00 $165.55 $957 +5.78
601–646 625 132 149.00–158.75 $155.79 $974 +0.29
650–699 676 188 145.50–155.00 $149.49 $1,011 +6.77
702–748 711 174 142.00–149.75 $147.08 $1,046 +6.26
751–784 772 173 140.00–152.25 $145.40 $1,122 +8.40
804–845 828 169 136.50–144.50 $142.25 $1,178 +5.31
858–897 879 254 135.25–142.00 $138.82 $1,220 +2.82
951–992 976 82 133.10–135.25 $133.94 $1,307 -1.31
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1061 1061 107 132.10 $132.10 $1,402 +7.11
1102–1110 1105 152 113.50–130.75 $128.64 $1,421 +9.64
1228 1228 84 123.50 $123.50 $1,517 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275–281 278 12 171.00–197.00 $183.86 $511 +3.86
343 343 13 185.00 $185.00 $635 —
407–444 426 44 164.00–183.00 $174.34 $743 —
467 467 3 158.00 $158.00 $738 -9.00
523–547 538 14 145.50–167.00 $153.78 $827 +6.28
557–576 564 27 150.00–161.50 $154.65 $872 +6.65
621–622 621 9 147.00–150.50 $148.17 $920 -2.33
684 684 4 138.00 $138.00 $944 +0.32
712 712 9 133.50–135.50 $134.17 $955 +3.61
783 783 7 131.50 $131.50 $1,030 +6.50
928 928 6 120.00 $120.00 $1,114 -8.44
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1236 1236 27 91.00 $91.00 $1,125 —
1561 1561 28 90.50 $90.50 $1,413 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
257 257 5 179.00 $179.00 $460 —
314–341 330 31 170.00–176.00 $172.46 $569 +2.46
353–395 371 72 162.00–169.00 $167.42 $621 -0.63
416–448 431 65 155.00–165.00 $159.81 $689 +1.42
451–497 484 117 153.00–163.50 $158.68 $768 +2.76
501–548 533 138 147.50–157.00 $153.74 $819 +5.03
557–598 579 163 146.00–155.00 $150.73 $873 +3.01
606 606 10 155.00 $155.00 $939 +14.85
628–649 637 69 136.25–146.00 $141.43 $901 +1.28
653–693 676 267 135.00–144.00 $140.67 $951 +4.21
701–747 734 124 127.75–136.50 $130.38 $957 -0.78
758–797 768 199 127.50–135.50 $133.94 $1,029 +1.39
801–839 827 238 127.50–130.10 $129.06 $1,067 -2.95
850–899 876 501 125.10–129.75 $127.14 $1,114 -0.89
902–946 922 176 125.10–128.75 $126.79 $1,169 +2.38
954–980 969 138 119.50–127.00 $124.58 $1,207 -0.65
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
231 231 4 170.00 $170.00 $393 —
274 274 7 184.00 $184.00 $504 +13.07
391 391 7 161.00 $161.00 $630 —
414–442 432 11 147.00–155.00 $149.79 $647 —
450–481 456 20 138.00–144.00 $142.73 $651 —
524–542 528 26 121.00–143.50 $135.87 $717 +1.23
572–595 585 16 135.50–143.50 $138.33 $809 —
637 637 5 135.00 $135.00 $860 +9.37
662–665 663 11 120.00–135.00 $129.53 $859 +5.41
735 735 7 125.50 $125.50 $922 +5.50
817 817 13 125.50 $125.50 $1,025 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1035–1047 1044 19 105.00–108.00 $105.63 $1,103 +0.63
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1081 1081 7 112.00 $112.00 $1,211 +2.76

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
758 758 6 127.00 $127.00 $963 —

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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.