Cattle Market Pulse

Ozarks Regional Stockyards Slaughter / Replacement Cattle Market Report, West Plains, MO

West Plains, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, October 21, 2026

643 head sold ·Official USDA report

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 643 845 658
Slaughter cattle 267 276 264
Replacement cattle 376 569 394

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, slaughter cows and bulls were 2.00-4.00 lower. Demand was good on a moderate supply of slaughter animals and bred cows and a light supply of pairs. The top slaughter bull sold for 219.00/cwt. and the top slaughter cow sold for 140.00/cwt. The top bred cow sold for 3650.00/head with pairs not well tested. Lean beef prices normally decline this time of the year as cow culling picks up and consumer spending patterns change in the Fall. The price of 50 percent lean beef has declined sharply since mid-year, from about 185.00/cwt. during May and June to 89.00/cwt. in mid-October. The price of this beef is 36 percent lower than the same time last year and is reflected in the current slaughter prices.

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
875–1000 938 (<2 yrs)N/A 2 2,200.00–2,600.00 $2,413.33 —
1610 1610 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 1 3,500.00 $3,500.00 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
890–1340 1017 85-90% 45 90.00–108.00 $100.32 $1,020 -4.82
700–1165 1020 85-90% 11 72.00–85.00 $79.63 $812 -25.51
900–1400 1036 85-90% 11 124.00–134.00 $127.83 $1,324 +22.69
795–1400 1099 85-90% 68 109.00–123.00 $114.66 $1,260 -1.71
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1140–1300 1207 80-85% 5 133.00–139.00 $135.64 $1,637 —
1030–1315 1222 80-85% 32 123.00–133.00 $127.74 $1,561 —
1105–1320 1232 80-85% 21 105.00–122.50 $116.70 $1,438 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1330–1620 1434 75-80% 8 109.00–118.00 $114.64 $1,644 -6.51
1305–1710 1442 75-80% 24 124.00–135.00 $127.98 $1,845 +6.83
1355–1680 1565 75-80% 6 137.00–140.00 $138.39 $2,166 -2.73

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1385–2405 1746 11 193.00–219.00 $198.10 $3,459 —
1500–2180 1780 4 146.00–170.00 $164.38 $2,926 —
1250–2565 1787 20 175.00–190.00 $182.96 $3,269 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1175–1515 1312 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 17 137.50–175.00 $147.50 $1,935
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
745–1305 1023 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 14 138.00–190.00 $156.28 $1,599
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1140–1360 1240 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 13 110.00–136.00 $126.61 $1,570
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
810–1130 1007 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 7 127.00–135.00 $130.51 $1,314

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Bred Cows

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
750–1130 995 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 5 2,700.00–2,800.00 $2,725.03
990–1130 1034 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 11 2,500.00–3,200.00 $2,800.59
980–1132 1050 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 21 1,600.00–2,300.00 $1,936.77
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1080–1575 1263 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 33 2,350.00–3,200.00 $2,592.68
1258–1298 1282 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 4 2,350.00–2,800.00 $2,547.38
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1135–1251 1218 Aged (>8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 11 1,500.00–2,000.00 $1,879.01
1140–1455 1245 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 24 1,700.00–2,300.00 $2,100.22
Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
920–1130 1015 Aged (>8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 16 1,100.00–1,900.00 $1,477.36
950–1120 1029 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 12 1,700.00–2,300.00 $2,000.10
Small 2-3 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
750–800 783 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 3 800.00–1,100.00 $1,004.26
Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1520–1720 1620 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 2 3,000.00–3,650.00 $3,304.94

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Bred Heifers

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
720–850 783 (<2 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 3 1,700.00–1,900.00 $1,802.98
700–1140 938 Young (2-4 yrs)All Stages (1-9 mo) 4 2,100.00–2,700.00 $2,398.13

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
975–1100 1058 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 3 2,100.00–2,450.00 $2,333.33 —

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Open Heifers

Medium 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
764–920 797 (<2 yrs)N/A 13 2,100.00–2,450.00 $2,350.15 —
926–1026 996 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 46 2,450.00–3,000.00 $2,797.28 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
700–880 798 (<2 yrs)N/A 4 265.00–320.00 $284.17 $2,268 +11.50
710–1110 937 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 10 195.00–260.00 $232.43 $2,178 +9.63
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1215 1215 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 2 2,600.00 $2,600.00 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1225–1390 1308 Young (2-4 yrs)N/A 2 195.00–202.50 $198.99 $2,603 —

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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.