Cattle Market Pulse

Northwest Alabama Livestock Cattle Sale Market Report

Russellville, Alabama · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, December 14, 2020

499 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Northwest Alabama Livestock Cattle Sale report →

heavy 3-weight M&L 1 heifers $134.92/cwt +4.09 vs last sale · ≈ $484/hd at 359 lb · 17 head
light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $128.51/cwt +2.51 vs last sale · ≈ $544/hd at 423 lb · 12 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $123.35/cwt +0.33 vs last sale · ≈ $585/hd at 474 lb · 11 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 499 930 522
Feeder cattle 407 725 392
Slaughter cattle 59 136 66
Replacement cattle 33 69 64

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week feeder cattle, slaughter cattle, and replacements sold steady to weaker

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
335–345 340 2 175.00–180.00 $177.46 $603 +3.70
370–375 373 2 160.00–167.50 $163.72 $611 +11.32
400–430 409 9 140.00–150.00 $143.34 $586 —
455–495 459 9 132.50–140.00 $136.35 $626 -11.15
515–530 523 5 130.00–135.00 $132.48 $693 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
308–345 317 11 152.50–160.00 $153.73 $487 -12.53
355–385 372 7 140.00–150.00 $145.91 $543 +3.86
425–440 433 2 130.00–135.00 $132.46 $574 -7.81
455–490 467 3 122.50–130.00 $125.94 $588 -12.82
530 530 3 117.50–125.00 $120.83 $640 -6.67

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350–380 359 17 130.00–139.00 $134.92 $484 +4.09
405–445 423 12 124.00–131.00 $128.51 $544 +2.51
460–495 474 11 117.50–127.50 $123.35 $585 +0.33
510–535 524 5 112.50–120.00 $117.03 $613 +0.39
565–580 572 8 105.00–110.00 $106.86 $611 -5.14
600–640 625 4 102.50–105.00 $103.48 $647 -10.02
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–330 317 6 125.00–135.00 $129.08 $409 +5.57
355–385 370 8 120.00–127.50 $124.45 $460 +1.70
415–440 426 9 115.00–122.50 $117.83 $502 -1.59
455–485 473 3 110.00–115.00 $112.55 $532 -2.44
530–545 539 10 100.00–110.00 $105.04 $566 -0.77

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
360–365 363 5 137.50–140.00 $139.01 $505 +3.97
405–440 424 7 125.00–135.00 $130.79 $555 -0.54
455–480 469 7 115.00–125.00 $119.70 $561 -0.30
565–585 577 3 110.00–117.50 $113.46 $655 +2.72
605–620 613 8 107.50–113.00 $110.01 $674 +1.52
660–680 670 3 100.00–110.00 $105.02 $704 -1.07
700–745 714 4 97.50–105.00 $101.86 $727 +0.63
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375–395 380 4 145.00–150.00 $148.70 $565 -1.14
415–445 428 6 140.00–147.50 $143.32 $613 +0.76
460–485 475 10 127.50–137.50 $132.45 $629 -0.05
505–540 522 9 120.00–130.00 $126.41 $660 +0.80

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
735–1130 942 80-85% 8 40.00–43.00 $41.22 $388 —
805–1210 1069 80-85% 4 45.00–47.00 $46.43 $496 +1.92
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
995–1170 1107 75-80% 3 49.00–51.00 $49.95 $553 —
1290–1580 1403 75-80% 5 50.00–54.00 $51.91 $728 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1005 1005 1 92.50 $92.50 $930 —
1250–1655 1419 5 68.00–74.00 $71.01 $1,008 —
1555–2015 1870 4 77.00–83.00 $80.14 $1,499 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
660–770 715 (<2 yrs)Open 2 500.00–615.00 $561.92

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
840–880 860 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 750.00–775.00 $762.21
1005–1055 1038 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 3 700.00–800.00 $767.74
1070–1255 1152 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 5 700.00–850.00 $756.99
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
875 875 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 825.00 $825.00
965–975 972 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 700.00–800.00 $766.90

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
985 985 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 775.00 $775.00 —
1040–1070 1060 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 3 600.00–625.00 $608.18 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1210–1285 1248 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 725.00–800.00 $763.63 —

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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.