Cattle Market Pulse

Public Auction Yards Livestock Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, November 1, 2024

2,028 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Public Auction Yards Livestock Cattle Auction report →

light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $275.62/cwt -5.42 vs last sale · ≈ $1,714/hd at 622 lb · 220 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $313.84/cwt +4.53 vs last sale · ≈ $1,645/hd at 524 lb · 186 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $286.03/cwt +0.43 vs last sale · ≈ $1,646/hd at 575 lb · 142 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,028 3,327 2,384
Feeder cattle 1,951 3,285 2,280
Slaughter cattle 67 35 77
Replacement cattle 10 7 27

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Feeder steer calves under 500 lbs sold mostly steady to firm in a narrow comparison. Steers 500-550 lbs sold steady to 3.00 higher; steers over 600 lbs sold mostly 5.00 lower. Heifer calves under 500 lbs sold mostly 5.00-10.00 higher; heifer calves over 500 lbs sold mostly 5.00-10.00 lower. All yearling cattle were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Yearling quality was mostly plain to average today. Spring born calf quality was mostly average to attractive, and more attractive than last weeks sale. Demand for light weight calves was mostly good to very good for all calves suitable to develop into yearlings. Demand for calves over 500 lbs was light to moderate. Package sizes were small to moderate. Demand for packages under 5 head remains considerably lighter than demand for moderate size packages. Market activity was mostly moderate to active. A larger buyer pool was seen this week compared to last weeks sale. Weigh up cows and bulls were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Most cows and bulls were very full this sale making comparisons difficult.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
298 unweaned 298 4 435.00 $435.00 $1,296 —
310–315 unweaned 313 3 420.00–432.50 $424.12 $1,327 +7.61
350–379 unweaned 364 21 377.50–387.50 $384.07 $1,398 -4.91
383 383 8 362.50 $362.50 $1,388 —
404–445 unweaned 421 86 345.00–392.50 $374.86 $1,578 +7.40
430 430 17 343.00 $343.00 $1,475 —
475–485 unweaned 478 76 317.50–343.00 $339.62 $1,623 -3.59
500–548 unweaned 524 186 298.00–323.00 $313.84 $1,645 +4.53
553–592 unweaned 573 126 281.00–294.00 $287.30 $1,646 +1.40
595 595 16 276.00 $276.00 $1,642 +6.00
601–646 unweaned 622 220 268.00–282.50 $275.62 $1,714 -5.42
653–695 unweaned 673 71 257.00–270.00 $263.63 $1,774 -5.24
711–730 unweaned 722 26 244.00–250.00 $245.92 $1,776 -10.10
771–791 unweaned 778 23 240.00–252.50 $248.08 $1,930 -6.92
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
273 unweaned 273 2 442.50 $442.50 $1,208 —
350–394 unweaned 388 20 272.50–375.00 $353.56 $1,372 -7.12
415–449 unweaned 440 14 323.00–340.00 $327.79 $1,442 —
456–498 unweaned 483 50 305.00–315.00 $307.88 $1,487 +2.88
560–593 unweaned 577 10 272.50–276.00 $274.40 $1,583 -4.38
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
551–591 unweaned 585 25 268.00–290.00 $271.88 $1,590 -1.12
674–678 unweaned 677 32 240.50–256.50 $253.51 $1,716 —
738–743 unweaned 741 12 241.00–246.00 $243.49 $1,804 —
751 unweaned 751 9 238.00 $238.00 $1,787 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
487 487 5 305.00 $305.00 $1,485 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
273–291 unweaned 289 23 391.00–405.00 $392.15 $1,133 —
318–349 unweaned 340 21 367.00–390.00 $373.35 $1,269 +17.49
357–371 unweaned 365 18 334.00–350.00 $343.89 $1,255 +12.83
400–425 unweaned 405 19 314.00–325.00 $320.63 $1,299 +5.95
453–498 unweaned 472 72 289.00–310.00 $298.63 $1,410 +2.86
500–549 unweaned 533 126 250.50–287.50 $265.56 $1,415 -22.04
556–597 unweaned 569 129 243.50–269.00 $257.89 $1,467 -3.41
604 604 7 238.00 $238.00 $1,438 —
600–642 unweaned 623 23 243.00–250.00 $248.36 $1,547 -7.27
647 647 13 245.00 $245.00 $1,585 —
671 unweaned 671 4 231.00 $231.00 $1,550 -20.00
741 unweaned 741 7 226.50 $226.50 $1,678 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
473 unweaned 473 2 260.00 $260.00 $1,230 —
507 unweaned 507 3 250.00 $250.00 $1,268 —
550 unweaned 550 10 242.00 $242.00 $1,331 —
609–646 unweaned 614 30 239.50–240.00 $239.93 $1,473 —
1133 1133 2 209.00 $209.00 $2,368 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375–399 unweaned 394 17 302.00–322.00 $315.29 $1,242 —
464–495 unweaned 474 11 280.00–283.00 $281.90 $1,336 -2.61
545 unweaned 545 3 251.00 $251.00 $1,368 -9.91
858 858 2 228.00 $228.00 $1,956 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
459 459 7 270.00 $270.00 $1,239 —
457–480 unweaned 466 10 252.50–286.00 $266.30 $1,241 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
456–485 unweaned 471 10 240.00–267.50 $253.33 $1,193 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
605 unweaned 605 3 251.00 $251.00 $1,519 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 unweaned 390 3 350.00 $350.00 $1,365 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1140 1140 85-90% 1 105.00 $105.00 $1,197 +10.76
1025–1268 1189 85-90% 13 71.00–83.50 $79.59 $946 —
1145–1275 1190 85-90% 3 85.00–91.00 $87.64 $1,043 —
1183–1255 1193 85-90% 11 114.00–126.00 $122.01 $1,456 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1311 1311 80-85% 8 107.00 $107.00 $1,403 —
1360 1360 80-85% 1 70.00 $70.00 $952 -31.26
1385 1385 80-85% 1 90.00 $90.00 $1,246 -11.26
1368–1570 1488 80-85% 12 116.00–127.00 $120.04 $1,786 +0.30
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1490 1490 75-80% 3 124.00 $124.00 $1,848 —
1690 1690 75-80% 1 109.00 $109.00 $1,842 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1420–2230 1825 2 127.00–132.00 $128.95 $2,353 -15.05

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
982 982 (<2 yrs)Open 5 172.50 $172.50 $1,694
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
865–895 880 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 150.00 $150.00 $1,320
1220–1255 1243 (<2 yrs)Open 3 125.00–145.00 $131.54 $1,635

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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.