Cattle Market Pulse

North Dakota Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

North Dakota · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, January 29, 2024

13,882 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest North Dakota Weekly Cattle Auction Summary report →

heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $280.44/cwt +11.63 vs last sale · ≈ $1,885/hd at 672 lb · 1,466 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $293.44/cwt +3.72 vs last sale · ≈ $1,836/hd at 626 lb · 1,362 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 steers $265.80/cwt +11.86 vs last sale · ≈ $1,927/hd at 725 lb · 1,033 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 13,882 9,449 2,361
Feeder cattle 13,882 9,449 2,361

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steers under 650 lbs 2.00 higher, except 500-550 lbs 10.00 higher, over 650 lbs 8.00 to 12.00 higher. Feeder heifers 6.00 to 10.00 higher, instances of 12.00 to 13.00 higher. Very good demand for feeder cattle this week. As the cattle inventory report came out and confirmed what everyone already knew, fewer cows and a smaller calf crop, futures traders got back into a bullish mindset. Feeder cattle futures contracts for the summer and fall months have risen back up to the levels they were before they collapsed after Thanksgiving. This fact has added a lot of fuel to the feeder cattle market, especially those cattle that can run on grass and be sold as a yearling this fall.

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
319–345 336 22 350.00–365.00 $359.81 $1,209 —
362–394 381 52 350.00–372.50 $367.49 $1,400 +0.68
420 420 3 325.00 $325.00 $1,365 -25.27
401–447 424 126 327.50–365.00 $347.24 $1,472 -3.03
450–498 481 351 305.00–355.00 $334.79 $1,610 +2.04
501–549 519 422 301.00–345.00 $329.19 $1,708 +9.28
550–593 571 912 280.00–330.00 $310.40 $1,772 -0.96
602–608 fancy 604 132 306.00–313.00 $310.71 $1,877 —
600–648 628 1,230 268.00–307.00 $291.59 $1,831 +1.87
650–698 672 1,466 257.00–292.25 $280.44 $1,885 +11.69
701–748 725 1,033 248.00–274.50 $265.80 $1,927 +11.86
753–799 776 633 233.00–261.50 $251.72 $1,953 +10.76
800–843 818 256 220.00–259.00 $238.45 $1,951 +7.91
818 818 9 222.00 $222.00 $1,816 -8.54
853–884 865 200 224.50–240.50 $235.66 $2,038 +14.08
916–922 919 124 227.25–229.00 $228.09 $2,096 +10.01
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
374 374 7 330.00 $330.00 $1,234 —
405–423 410 34 330.00 $330.00 $1,353 +16.00
466–496 490 93 295.00–320.00 $316.19 $1,549 +2.96
545–548 547 20 295.00–300.00 $297.49 $1,627 +6.59
563–596 579 87 270.00–299.00 $284.22 $1,646 +2.98
601–648 627 67 270.00–286.00 $276.52 $1,734 +9.38
670–694 682 148 254.00–267.00 $261.72 $1,785 +20.47
723–737 725 31 243.00–252.50 $244.56 $1,773 +8.94
754 754 7 239.50 $239.50 $1,806 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
308–324 320 23 337.00–342.50 $338.38 $1,083 +17.60
358–389 375 69 322.00–337.50 $329.42 $1,235 +17.40
405–437 427 144 305.00–340.00 $318.88 $1,362 +13.92
450–498 469 289 285.00–328.00 $308.25 $1,446 +5.41
481 481 11 280.00 $280.00 $1,347 -22.84
501–546 525 462 279.00–321.00 $303.41 $1,593 +6.21
554 thin fleshed 554 116 301.50 $301.50 $1,670 +19.76
559 559 24 261.00 $261.00 $1,459 -9.46
550–599 577 705 260.00–301.00 $280.67 $1,619 +10.21
600–604 604 117 276.25–285.00 $276.99 $1,673 +7.67
600–648 626 517 246.00–277.00 $266.02 $1,665 +12.04
651–698 666 577 244.00–263.00 $254.70 $1,696 +7.99
659–694 678 63 252.50–264.00 $261.09 $1,770 +14.38
700–717 704 174 253.00–289.00 $268.06 $1,887 +40.42
705–741 720 331 230.00–245.50 $241.00 $1,735 +13.36
752–798 776 61 201.00–225.00 $213.32 $1,655 -3.50
794 794 21 264.00 $264.00 $2,096 +44.00
803 803 67 225.00 $225.00 $1,807 +12.38
802–837 823 25 227.50–230.50 $229.33 $1,887 +16.71
858 858 27 231.00 $231.00 $1,982 +21.00
919 919 6 198.00 $198.00 $1,820 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
423–438 430 11 301.00–305.00 $303.15 $1,304 -17.85
496 496 4 282.00 $282.00 $1,399 +19.12
515 thin fleshed 515 67 293.00 $293.00 $1,509 —
503–542 526 34 231.00–282.50 $259.72 $1,366 -10.82
561–597 575 100 252.50–267.00 $262.74 $1,511 +13.56
624 624 13 244.00 $244.00 $1,523 —
672 672 8 236.00 $236.00 $1,586 +20.00
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1083 1083 11 188.50 $188.50 $2,041 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
564 564 8 227.50 $227.50 $1,283 -32.50

↑ 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.