Cattle Market Pulse

Montana Weekly Livestock Auction Summary

Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, January 24, 2022

5,439 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Montana Weekly Livestock Auction Summary report →

heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $176.56/cwt +1.13 vs last sale · ≈ $839/hd at 475 lb · 281 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $202.72/cwt +5.25 vs last sale · ≈ $1,064/hd at 525 lb · 238 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $162.11/cwt -2.83 vs last sale · ≈ $928/hd at 572 lb · 236 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 5,439 11,288 5,522
Feeder cattle 4,043 5,104 4,002
Slaughter cattle 980 940 1,034
Replacement cattle 416 1,232 486

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Steer calves under 550 lbs sold unevenly steady. Steers over 550 lbs traded generally steady. Heifer calves under 500 lbs sold unevenly steady, heifers over 500 lbs sold steady to weak. Quality this week was mixed from plain to very attractive with a large variety of quality seen this week. Sales that featured feeders had noticeable higher quality cattle and stronger demand from buyers. One iron home raised feeders sold on very good demand this week. The best demand continues to be for cattle suitable to develop into yearlings as the August feeder cattle contract continues to hover at or slightly over 180.00. The January contract settled Thursday at 158.925, 1.35 lower than last Friday. The March closed at 159.525, down 3.675 from last week. Market activity this week was mostly moderate to active. Weigh up cows sold on mostly good demand for moderate offerings. Packers showed good demand for cows for immediate harvest throughout the week. Packers pushed to own as many cows as possible as they outbid most feeding cow buyers searching for slaughter cows. Slaughter cows sold mostly 3.00-7.00 higher on all classes. The best demand and most advancement in slaughter cow prices was for lean cows. Feeding cows were too lightly tested to trend, however higher undertones were noticed. Slaughter bulls sold steady to 1.00 higher on a heavy offering. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold steady to 5.00 higher. A few heifers that lost calves have started to show up as a few ranchers have started to calve. Demand for these offerings is very good.

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
329 329 7 215.00 $215.00 $707 -12.03
371–399 381 40 207.00–222.50 $213.95 $815 -0.39
405–447 427 83 208.50–235.00 $215.60 $921 +0.80
447 thin fleshed 447 10 241.00 $241.00 $1,077 —
461 thin fleshed 461 12 237.00 $237.00 $1,093 —
451–498 482 186 199.00–230.00 $212.59 $1,025 +1.59
506 thin fleshed 506 45 205.50 $205.50 $1,040 —
500–542 529 193 194.00–206.00 $202.07 $1,069 +3.55
559 fancy 559 16 205.50 $205.50 $1,149 -2.00
550–583 566 104 184.00–196.00 $188.69 $1,068 -4.33
600–649 624 231 170.00–190.50 $178.32 $1,113 -4.17
654–687 672 208 161.00–176.50 $170.85 $1,148 +1.56
702–729 723 56 161.00–168.75 $166.85 $1,206 +4.03
758–799 789 70 154.00–162.00 $156.58 $1,235 -6.53
800–837 828 31 150.00–155.00 $153.71 $1,273 -6.29
854–855 854 9 155.00 $155.00 $1,324 —
911 911 6 149.00 $149.00 $1,357 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–395 361 7 200.00–206.00 $203.75 $736 +7.54
400–439 419 29 190.00–212.50 $207.83 $871 +5.19
458–496 472 45 192.00–203.00 $198.74 $938 +3.72
512–535 514 59 181.00–190.50 $189.83 $976 +12.36
550–598 577 30 152.00–183.00 $171.02 $987 -2.72
603–645 619 50 146.00–169.50 $162.49 $1,006 -2.51
660–677 672 7 159.00–166.00 $160.96 $1,082 +0.20
718–725 722 4 145.00–153.00 $148.98 $1,076 +0.64
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
676 676 51 152.00 $152.00 $1,028 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
361 361 7 210.00 $210.00 $758 —
476 476 4 195.00 $195.00 $928 -8.00
695 695 1 145.00 $145.00 $1,008 —
865 865 11 137.50 $137.50 $1,189 —
925 925 12 138.00 $138.00 $1,276 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
756 756 16 148.50 $148.50 $1,123 —
1163 1163 4 101.00 $101.00 $1,175 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
533 533 14 147.00 $147.00 $784 —
672 672 5 141.00 $141.00 $948 +8.50

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
368 368 16 189.00 $189.00 $696 +5.39
410–438 428 79 166.00–197.00 $185.28 $793 -2.67
450–498 475 281 169.00–184.50 $176.56 $839 +0.31
500–545 527 203 160.00–171.00 $166.19 $876 -2.09
537 537 15 158.50 $158.50 $851 -3.50
566 fancy 566 22 170.50 $170.50 $965 —
550–595 573 210 156.00–170.00 $161.42 $925 -4.71
575 575 4 152.00 $152.00 $874 -14.13
602 unweaned 602 7 145.00 $145.00 $873 —
600–641 618 193 150.00–160.50 $156.55 $967 +3.05
650–663 655 27 145.00–151.00 $148.39 $972 -3.29
651–674 668 42 136.00–142.00 $140.27 $937 -11.41
704–736 719 73 142.50–148.00 $144.87 $1,042 -5.99
819–835 827 61 131.50–142.00 $137.81 $1,140 -0.69
865–874 871 8 134.00–134.50 $134.19 $1,169 -0.81
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
392 392 9 170.00 $170.00 $666 +0.13
401–442 418 48 157.50–170.00 $166.00 $694 -4.03
470–493 483 41 150.00–167.50 $159.54 $771 -3.67
500–523 513 19 147.50–159.00 $154.58 $793 +0.58
562–598 577 25 144.00–157.50 $150.55 $869 -6.12
588 unweaned 588 5 134.00 $134.00 $788 —
605–623 617 8 140.00–146.00 $144.77 $893 +2.61
670 670 3 139.00 $139.00 $931 +1.50
752–781 765 9 133.00–136.00 $134.64 $1,030 +0.97
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
374–390 379 41 161.00–174.00 $166.77 $632 -5.23
448 448 8 154.00 $154.00 $690 -19.00
500 500 7 155.00 $155.00 $775 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
667 667 5 143.00 $143.00 $954 —
763–778 773 9 135.00–138.50 $137.35 $1,062 —
1010–1019 1015 7 131.00–132.50 $131.64 $1,336 —
1055 1055 1 131.00 $131.00 $1,382 —
1122 fancy 1122 6 130.00 $130.00 $1,459 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
342 342 13 152.50 $152.50 $522 —
382 382 13 151.00 $151.00 $577 +0.07
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
530–533 531 25 135.00–137.00 $135.64 $720 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
563 563 6 141.00 $141.00 $794 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
399 399 6 200.00 $200.00 $798 —
408 408 2 155.00 $155.00 $632 -40.00
585–589 586 32 151.00–153.00 $152.69 $895 -12.44
602–606 605 23 151.00 $151.00 $914 -4.61
688 688 5 138.00 $138.00 $949 -10.81
703 703 14 139.00 $139.00 $977 —
755–796 772 19 131.00–137.00 $133.60 $1,031 —
805 805 3 121.00 $121.00 $974 —
924 924 7 115.00 $115.00 $1,063 —
950–990 981 9 110.00–125.00 $113.23 $1,111 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
488–498 496 10 150.00–163.00 $160.30 $795 —
690 690 2 131.00 $131.00 $904 —
727 727 3 129.00 $129.00 $938 -14.00
770–778 775 8 125.00–128.00 $126.88 $983 —
938 938 4 101.00 $101.00 $947 -14.00
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
393 393 3 185.00 $185.00 $727 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1110 1110 1 100.00 $100.00 $1,110 -6.00

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1137–1564 1380 80-85% 34 52.00–59.50 $57.33 $791 -0.52
1300–1645 1400 80-85% 188 58.50–67.00 $63.47 $889 +11.02
1444 1444 80-85% 16 70.50 $70.50 $1,018 +18.05
1218–1675 1455 80-85% 74 56.00–68.50 $63.98 $931 —
1540 1540 80-85% 1 68.00 $68.00 $1,047 +2.08
1440–1645 1543 80-85% 2 54.00–55.00 $54.53 $841 -11.39
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
920–990 955 85-90% 3 52.50–57.50 $54.65 $522 +4.65
910–995 977 85-90% 18 46.00–51.00 $50.61 $494 +0.61
1000–1348 1184 85-90% 131 45.00–58.50 $53.17 $630 +11.56
1005–1375 1193 85-90% 125 54.00–68.50 $59.88 $714 +18.27
1153–1315 1207 85-90% 3 32.00–44.00 $36.36 $439 -18.02
1180–1280 1230 85-90% 2 61.00 $61.00 $750 +5.58
1165–1299 1277 85-90% 6 55.50–58.00 $57.62 $736 —
1290 1290 85-90% 1 67.00 $67.00 $864 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1418–1600 1492 75-80% 32 68.75–73.00 $69.03 $1,030 —
1513–1850 1658 75-80% 25 60.00–67.00 $65.60 $1,088 -4.90
1500–1967 1684 75-80% 14 67.50–72.00 $69.69 $1,174 -0.81

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1245–1830 1368 16 84.50–92.00 $88.08 $1,205 +5.88
1529 1529 8 77.00 $77.00 $1,177 —
1220–2430 1673 45 71.00–83.00 $77.90 $1,303 —
1425–2103 1751 35 82.00–88.50 $84.66 $1,482 —
1825–2385 2096 12 91.00–97.50 $93.93 $1,969 —
2540–2710 2625 2 80.00–82.00 $80.97 $2,125 —
YG2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
2515 2515 1 89.50 $89.50 $2,251 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
644–750 thin fleshed 699 (<2 yrs)Open 17 80.00–84.00 $80.73 $564
805–1460 968 (<2 yrs)Open 150 73.00–115.00 $92.01 $891
900–1125 thin fleshed 1013 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 51.50–58.00 $54.39 $551
795–1575 1016 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 124 58.50–99.00 $81.32 $826
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
780–790 785 (<2 yrs)Open 2 78.00–85.00 $81.48 $640
933 933 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 5 52.00 $52.00 $485
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1110 1110 (<2 yrs)Open 4 65.00 $65.00 $722

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1210–1275 1253 Young (2-4 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 3 875.00–900.00 $883.05
1200–1278 1255 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 10 1,100.00 $1,100.00
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1216 1216 Young (2-4 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 5 70.00 $70.00 $851

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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.