Cattle Market Pulse

Ozarks Regional Stockyards Slaughter / Replacement Cattle Market Report

West Plains, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, February 25, 2026

663 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 663 485 652
Slaughter cattle 216 176 302
Replacement cattle 447 309 350

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows were 1.00-2.00 higher and slaughter bulls were 2.00-3.00 higher. Bred cows sold 200.00-300.00/head higher. Demand was good on a moderate supply. The top slaughter bull sold for 220.00/cwt. and the top slaughter cow sold for 188.00/cwt. Replacement cattle outnumbered slaughter animals 2 - 1 with the top pairs selling for 4600.00/pair and the top bred cows selling for 3800.00/head. The market was very active especially for stocker cows with those under 2 years of age topping the market at 360.00/cwt. Pastures are starting to have a tinge of green as warmer temperatures are becoming more and more common.

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
960–1265 1112 (<2 yrs)N/A 3 2,900.00–3,900.00 $3,578.86 —
1005–1435 1197 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 3 4,200.00–4,450.00 $4,355.92 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1015–1310 1147 80-85% 40 159.00–171.00 $165.98 $1,904 +1.75
1025–1265 1168 80-85% 16 172.00–188.00 $178.37 $2,083 +0.21
1015–1465 1173 80-85% 25 140.00–158.00 $151.04 $1,772 -27.12
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
700–1285 955 85-90% 22 109.00–133.00 $122.73 $1,172 -40.07
890–1055 959 85-90% 6 90.00–105.00 $96.83 $929 -65.97
905–1215 1001 85-90% 13 158.00–170.00 $162.10 $1,623 +58.21
840–1330 1007 85-90% 19 135.00–156.00 $143.56 $1,446 +39.67
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1310–1595 1444 75-80% 10 162.00–170.00 $166.66 $2,407 —
1305–1695 1450 75-80% 12 150.00–160.00 $155.81 $2,259 —
1315–1730 1518 75-80% 12 173.00–179.00 $175.87 $2,670 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1385–1825 1608 6 203.00–220.00 $210.47 $3,384 +21.63
1305–2020 1637 27 182.00–201.00 $191.64 $3,137 +2.80
1455–1855 1741 8 161.00–176.00 $166.00 $2,890 —

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Stock Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
700–860 779 (<2 yrs)Open 9 285.00–360.00 $322.73 $2,514
855–1105 972 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 24 174.00–257.50 $210.12 $2,042
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
785–1110 902 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 22 120.00–167.50 $144.81 $1,306
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1150–1310 1216 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 11 177.50–207.50 $188.74 $2,295
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
740–1180 960 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 2 140.00–155.00 $145.78 $1,399

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Bred Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
970–1145 1069 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 31 2,550.00–3,550.00 $3,219.14
945–1132 1074 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 33 2,500.00–3,350.00 $2,994.24
1065–1125 1095 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 2 2,500.00–2,600.00 $2,548.63
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1170–1610 1276 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 43 2,600.00–3,800.00 $3,259.42
1155–1565 1325 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 18 2,500.00–3,300.00 $3,001.37
1328 1328 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 2 2,800.00 $2,800.00
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
725–1145 1022 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 41 1,700.00–2,500.00 $2,130.07
1010–1085 1061 Aged (>8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 4 1,550.00–1,900.00 $1,765.61
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
750–1080 864 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 22 1,150.00–1,825.00 $1,535.46
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1180–1370 1232 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 10 1,850.00–2,500.00 $2,188.37

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Bred Heifers

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
700–850 778 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 3 1,850.00–2,000.00 $1,921.41
790–980 926 Young (2-4 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 7 2,500.00–3,650.00 $3,369.60

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
980–1025 989 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 5 3,550.00–4,350.00 $3,860.00 —
1080–1108 1097 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 5 4,300.00–4,600.00 $4,420.00 —
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
925–1160 1032 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 7 2,700.00–3,300.00 $3,142.86 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1165–1190 1178 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 2 3,600.00–4,300.00 $3,950.00 —
1183–1200 1186 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 5 3,500.00 $3,500.00 —
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
750 750 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 3 2,200.00 $2,200.00 —

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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.