Cattle Market Pulse

Mitchell Livestock Auction Market Report

Mitchell, South Dakota · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, March 18, 2021

2,702 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 8-weight M&L 1 steers $135.14/cwt +4.34 vs last sale · ≈ $1,188/hd at 879 lb · 346 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $132.27/cwt +2.51 vs last sale · ≈ $961/hd at 726 lb · 235 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $137.15/cwt -0.18 vs last sale · ≈ $1,071/hd at 781 lb · 208 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,702 3,851 680
Feeder cattle 2,702 3,851 680

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steers 650-800 lbs. sold unevenly steady, steers 800 lbs. and up sold 3.00-6.00 higher. Feeder heifers 650 -750 lbs. sold unevenly steady, heifers 750 lbs. and up sold 2.00-6.00 higher. Had some load lots in todays offering. Demand was good. In this area we had 6-12 inches of wet snow over the weekend. causing many to cancel for todays auction. Many feeders were caring alot of mud. The next feeder cattle auction will be March 25th, expecting 5500 head of feeders, starting at 8:30 am.

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
391 391 4 208.00 $208.00 $813 —
486 486 6 182.00 $182.00 $885 +2.50
500–535 510 13 170.00–185.00 $181.14 $924 +9.05
567–597 584 56 167.50–172.50 $168.69 $985 +2.19
623–645 637 32 147.50–159.00 $151.62 $966 -6.13
656–689 686 107 148.50–155.00 $151.48 $1,039 +1.46
702–749 724 86 139.50–150.25 $143.80 $1,041 +4.16
737 737 20 136.00 $136.00 $1,002 -3.64
767–796 781 208 131.50–140.00 $137.15 $1,071 -1.35
807–845 821 199 130.75–139.35 $136.89 $1,124 +6.31
861–892 879 346 133.85–136.25 $135.14 $1,188 +4.34
932–946 937 168 128.00–133.75 $130.99 $1,227 +3.56
998 998 53 128.50 $128.50 $1,282 +3.50
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1022–1039 1030 108 127.00–127.35 $127.17 $1,310 +3.17
1052–1061 1057 169 126.00–130.50 $128.41 $1,357 +7.81
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
586 586 7 155.00 $155.00 $908 —
838 838 3 126.50 $126.50 $1,060 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
423 423 5 175.00 $175.00 $740 +16.69
474 474 7 156.50 $156.50 $742 -1.39
530–535 531 54 142.50–155.50 $145.26 $771 -12.39
551–578 571 46 134.50–146.50 $140.77 $804 -2.62
623–641 630 87 137.75–138.50 $138.19 $871 +1.95
646 646 6 134.50 $134.50 $869 -1.74
677 677 18 140.25 $140.25 $949 +7.32
656–689 678 102 132.50–137.00 $135.35 $918 +2.42
705–719 716 85 135.00–142.00 $140.54 $1,006 +18.54
711–749 732 150 121.75–131.75 $127.59 $934 -3.05
760–798 786 176 128.00–140.00 $130.67 $1,027 +4.79
798 798 23 133.50 $133.50 $1,065 +7.62
825 825 14 129.50 $129.50 $1,068 +7.47
803–835 831 110 126.50–128.50 $126.82 $1,054 +4.79
879–884 880 32 124.00–125.50 $125.17 $1,101 -6.33
913–937 936 92 124.25–125.25 $124.30 $1,163 +19.05
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
478 478 6 153.00 $153.00 $731 —
542 542 12 141.00 $141.00 $764 —
595 595 5 133.00 $133.00 $791 —
773–782 780 15 113.50–124.50 $122.32 $954 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1033 1033 3 115.25 $115.25 $1,191 +8.50

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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.