Cattle Market Pulse

Ozarks Regional Stockyards Slaughter / Replacement Cattle Market Report

West Plains, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 4, 2024

632 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 632 756 1,058
Slaughter cattle 390 339 813
Replacement cattle 242 417 245

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows were steady and slaughter bulls were 1.00-2.00 higher. Demand was good on a moderate supply of slaughter animals and a light supply of replacement cattle. With a special replacement auction only three days away, the supply of bred cows and pairs was light. There was a limited number of higher quality replacement animals in the offering as most of those are waiting to be sold at Saturday's Special Sale.

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
1415 1415 (<2 yrs)N/A 1 2,600.00 $2,600.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1005–1345 1170 80-85% 11 91.00–105.00 $101.52 $1,188 -0.07
1030–1305 1199 80-85% 85 106.00–118.00 $112.10 $1,344 -10.63
1035–1325 1217 80-85% 28 117.00–127.00 $120.93 $1,472 +6.32
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
700–1045 821 85-90% 6 60.00–75.00 $66.15 $543 -0.44
765–1325 1007 85-90% 24 77.00–92.00 $85.54 $861 -1.16
745–1295 1061 85-90% 69 93.00–107.00 $100.20 $1,063 -0.13
845–1250 1067 85-90% 19 107.00–125.00 $111.37 $1,188 +0.61
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1250–1655 1365 75-80% 63 108.00–119.00 $113.48 $1,549 —
1300–1705 1462 75-80% 9 101.00–107.00 $103.57 $1,514 —
1320–1770 1516 75-80% 17 120.00–125.00 $121.60 $1,843 +17.08

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1260–1860 1517 11 127.00–138.00 $133.41 $2,024 —
1300–2410 1735 40 140.00–160.00 $149.91 $2,601 —
1548–2120 1826 8 164.00–178.00 $168.08 $3,069 —

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Stock Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
735–920 827 (<2 yrs)Open 5 195.00–241.00 $221.20 $1,829
770–1050 931 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 17 125.00–172.50 $143.33 $1,334
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1085–1340 1167 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 21 101.00–119.00 $109.23 $1,275
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
890–945 934 (<2 yrs)Open 5 197.50–212.50 $205.09 $1,916
885–1250 1103 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 11 120.00–177.50 $144.81 $1,597
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
875–1075 966 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 10 91.00–122.00 $111.42 $1,076

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Bred Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1025 1025 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 3 1,650.00 $1,650.00
995–1215 1038 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 16 1,750.00–2,200.00 $1,930.37
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
750–1085 985 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 18 1,175.00–1,700.00 $1,481.78
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1145–1500 1300 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 17 1,800.00–2,450.00 $2,080.23
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1100–1250 1160 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 13 1,425.00–1,775.00 $1,644.12
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
850–915 862 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 6 900.00–1,050.00 $934.82

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
920 920 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 6 1,800.00 $1,800.00
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
785–865 812 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 3 1,250.00–1,300.00 $1,282.24

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1140–1385 1275 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 2,250.00–3,150.00 $2,575.00 —
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
800–835 818 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 1,750.00–2,150.00 $1,950.00 —

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Heifer Pairs

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
800 800 (<2 yrs)Open 1 1,950.00 $1,950.00 —

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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.