Cattle Market Pulse

Public Auction Yards Livestock Cattle Auction Market Report

Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, February 16, 2022

846 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 8-weight M&L 1 steers $155.50/cwt ≈ $1,353/hd at 870 lb · 74 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $159.13/cwt +3.13 vs last sale · ≈ $996/hd at 626 lb · 56 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 steers $159.67/cwt ≈ $1,146/hd at 718 lb · 52 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 846 748 518
Feeder cattle 490 236 174
Slaughter cattle 256 424 299
Replacement cattle 100 88 45

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, feeders were not well tested last week, so no trend is available. Demand was very good on a light selection of good quality cattle. Slaughter cows and bulls were steady.

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
395 395 21 240.00 $240.00 $948 —
435–447 446 8 231.00 $231.00 $1,030 +11.00
513–529 519 25 213.00–223.00 $219.41 $1,139 +17.43
550–560 556 21 199.50–200.00 $199.76 $1,111 —
614–630 623 13 184.00–188.00 $186.15 $1,160 —
661 661 4 175.00 $175.00 $1,157 —
707–745 718 52 154.00–163.00 $159.67 $1,146 —
830 830 3 156.00 $156.00 $1,295 +1.00
870 870 74 155.50 $155.50 $1,353 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
510 510 1 190.00 $190.00 $969 —
720–728 724 4 146.00–153.00 $149.48 $1,082 —
770 770 1 151.00 $151.00 $1,163 —
815–848 843 6 143.00–145.00 $143.32 $1,208 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300 300 4 175.00 $175.00 $525 —
485 485 1 175.00 $175.00 $849 —
645 645 1 147.00 $147.00 $948 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
334 334 8 200.00 $200.00 $668 —
380 380 13 192.50–210.00 $207.31 $788 +16.31
449 449 14 203.00 $203.00 $911 +22.00
503–528 521 22 181.00–192.00 $183.90 $958 +8.42
556–588 561 12 169.00–175.00 $170.05 $954 —
613–635 626 56 157.50–167.00 $159.13 $996 +3.13
662 662 7 149.00 $149.00 $986 —
739–743 740 45 143.50–144.00 $143.64 $1,063 -4.36
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
334–345 335 8 175.00–182.50 $181.54 $608 —
405–419 416 5 170.00–172.00 $170.39 $709 —
455 455 1 177.50 $177.50 $808 —
505 505 1 179.00 $179.00 $904 —
567–570 568 6 160.00–162.00 $160.67 $913 —
609 609 6 146.00 $146.00 $889 —
750 750 1 140.00 $140.00 $1,050 —
880 880 3 133.50 $133.50 $1,175 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
550 550 2 142.00 $142.00 $781 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
515 515 1 197.50 $197.50 $1,017 —
575 575 1 170.00 $170.00 $978 -7.00
605 605 1 171.00 $171.00 $1,035 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
740 740 2 146.00 $146.00 $1,080 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1435–1480 1477 75-80% 14 75.00–76.00 $75.93 $1,121 —
1245–1618 1504 75-80% 27 67.00–73.50 $71.89 $1,081 —
1535 1535 75-80% 1 69.00 $69.00 $1,059 —
1421–1775 1567 75-80% 77 72.00–74.50 $72.81 $1,141 +0.31
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185–1441 1297 80-85% 29 68.00–74.00 $71.30 $925 —
1125–1483 1432 80-85% 7 59.00–60.00 $59.11 $846 -17.26
1115–1841 1446 80-85% 44 67.50–74.00 $70.49 $1,019 -5.88
1420–1548 1498 80-85% 4 76.00 $76.00 $1,138 —
1513 1513 80-85% 2 63.00 $63.00 $953 -14.50
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
885–1167 1063 85-90% 8 52.00–56.00 $53.65 $570 —
880–1220 1140 85-90% 21 57.00–65.00 $60.82 $693 +5.79
1080–1168 1159 85-90% 10 69.00–73.00 $69.37 $804 —
1041–1460 1180 85-90% 12 66.00–73.00 $68.30 $806 —
1055–1372 1214 85-90% 11 64.00–67.00 $65.31 $793 -9.43
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1736–1810 1742 65-75% 26 75.00–77.00 $76.84 $1,339 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1245–1825 1478 17 83.00–90.00 $86.72 $1,282 —
1628–2035 1805 18 91.00–101.00 $96.15 $1,736 —
1870–2110 1938 6 106.00–106.50 $106.32 $2,060 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
980–1235 1078 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 4 78.00–85.00 $80.91 $872
995–1420 1208 (<2 yrs)Open 2 93.00–114.00 $101.65 $1,228

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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.