Cattle Market Pulse

Ozarks Regional Stockyards Slaughter / Replacement Cattle Market Report

West Plains, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, January 29, 2025

611 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 611 414 642
Slaughter cattle 292 170 420
Replacement cattle 319 244 222

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows and bulls sold 3.00-6.00 higher. Demand was good on a moderate supply. Top slaughter bulls brought 188.00/cwt. while the top slaughter cows brought 148.00cwt. The offering of bred cows and pairs were good considering there will be a special replacement sale this Saturday. The top pairs brought 3100.00/pair, and the top bred cows brought 2950.00/head. The USDA Cold Storage Report, released Friday, reported total pounds of beef in freezers were up 4 percent from the previous month but down 5 percent from last year.

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
1135–1215 1175 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 2 2,600.00–3,000.00 $2,806.81 —
1338 1338 (<2 yrs)N/A 2 2,250.00 $2,250.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
820–1015 914 85-90% 5 77.00–80.00 $78.88 $721 —
780–1310 1006 85-90% 45 83.00–113.00 $102.62 $1,032 -23.85
965–1140 1014 85-90% 8 130.00–143.00 $135.10 $1,370 +8.63
825–1295 1027 85-90% 36 115.00–129.00 $121.23 $1,245 -5.24
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1320–1735 1457 75-80% 19 101.00–124.00 $117.93 $1,718 —
1330–1795 1476 75-80% 47 124.00–135.00 $129.73 $1,915 —
1360–1815 1543 75-80% 16 135.00–146.00 $137.63 $2,124 +10.62
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1045–1292 1177 80-85% 38 122.00–134.00 $127.97 $1,506 -7.95
1075–1315 1194 80-85% 25 101.00–121.00 $114.37 $1,366 -21.55
1035–1292 1213 80-85% 10 135.00–148.00 $137.39 $1,667 +14.23

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1300–1710 1461 11 127.00–151.00 $141.71 $2,070 —
1370–2485 1784 24 153.00–169.00 $160.50 $2,863 —
1640–2180 1891 8 171.00–188.00 $178.25 $3,371 +4.05

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Stock Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
700–845 744 (<2 yrs)Open 7 187.50–232.50 $218.46 $1,625
760–1085 925 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 21 123.00–175.00 $148.94 $1,378
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
935–1015 989 (<2 yrs)Open 5 182.50–212.50 $192.72 $1,906
1070–1485 1213 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 16 114.00–180.00 $140.30 $1,702

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1102–1284 1232 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 8 1,800.00–2,400.00 $2,302.49
1035–1595 1242 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 50 2,000.00–2,950.00 $2,588.84
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
820–1175 996 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 32 1,000.00–1,900.00 $1,544.78
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1125 1125 Aged (>8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 5 1,500.00 $1,500.00
1115–1375 1209 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 22 1,550.00–1,950.00 $1,779.90
Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
900–1050 994 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 15 1,900.00–2,800.00 $2,232.03
1088 1088 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 1,800.00 $1,800.00
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
700–980 808 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 3 350.00–875.00 $692.73

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Bred Heifers

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
780–980 828 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 12 1,900.00–2,000.00 $1,939.84
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1050 1050 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 10 2,500.00 $2,500.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1025–1100 1063 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 6 2,050.00–2,600.00 $2,308.33 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1400 1400 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 3,100.00 $3,100.00 —
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
800–950 875 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 2,200.00–2,400.00 $2,300.00 —

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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.