Cattle Market Pulse

Ozarks Regional Stockyards Slaughter / Replacement Cattle Market Report

West Plains, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, January 3, 2024

711 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Ozarks Regional Stockyards Slaughter / Replacement Cattle report →

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 711 567 694
Slaughter cattle 462 370 433
Replacement cattle 249 197 261

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to the last sale two weeks ago, slaughter cows were steady while slaughter bulls were 2.00 higher. Demand was good on a heavy supply of slaughter animals, a moderate supply of bred cows and a light supply of pairs.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1400–1610 1472 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 3 1,675.00–1,950.00 $1,799.07 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
700–1160 924 85-90% 13 50.00–62.00 $54.24 $501 -12.48
700–1410 962 85-90% 28 63.00–73.00 $68.38 $658 -20.26
815–1215 1044 85-90% 19 86.00–93.00 $88.59 $925 +9.81
700–1240 1057 85-90% 129 72.50–86.00 $78.81 $833 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1055–1320 1207 80-85% 24 70.00–83.00 $79.20 $956 -1.45
1050–1335 1224 80-85% 12 93.00–115.00 $98.29 $1,203 +17.64
1010–1340 1258 80-85% 76 83.00–93.00 $88.37 $1,112 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1340–1415 1380 75-80% 10 95.00–114.00 $109.05 $1,505 —
1305–1900 1468 75-80% 90 85.00–95.00 $90.13 $1,323 -8.15
1310–1790 1495 75-80% 12 73.00–85.00 $80.28 $1,200 -0.47

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1265–1865 1547 8 84.00–104.00 $95.45 $1,477 —
1425–2075 1750 19 105.00–115.00 $110.92 $1,941 —
1255–2175 1805 16 116.00–129.00 $120.39 $2,173 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1110–1305 1160 (<2 yrs)Open 4 145.00–155.00 $147.39 $1,710
1095–1410 1198 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 17 90.00–130.00 $111.54 $1,336
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
700–835 745 (<2 yrs)Open 3 127.50–140.00 $132.95 $990
775–1080 934 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 16 97.00–125.00 $109.54 $1,023
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
700–955 838 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 7 85.00–96.00 $90.93 $762
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1025–1125 1065 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 7 79.00–96.00 $85.37 $909

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1125–1480 1290 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 35 1,250.00–1,800.00 $1,470.54
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
700–1115 918 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 26 650.00–1,150.00 $1,004.46
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
818–1080 971 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 13 1,200.00–1,525.00 $1,347.17
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1075–1255 1108 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 8 1,000.00–1,175.00 $1,119.21
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
700–945 775 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 4 400.00–650.00 $498.99

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Bred Heifers

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
850–975 880 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 11 900.00–1,200.00 $1,110.85
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1075–1100 1094 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 4 1,000.00–1,200.00 $1,125.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
700–938 859 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 3 1,000.00–1,400.00 $1,266.67 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1125–1155 1140 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,300.00–1,400.00 $1,350.00 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
975 975 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,700.00 $1,700.00 —

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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.