Cattle Market Public Auction Yards Livestock Cattle Auction Market Report
Billings, Montana · USDA-reported Auction Livestock
Sale of Wednesday, September 21, 20221,375 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 heifers
$167.23/cwt
+0.73 vs last sale · ≈ $1,486/hd at 888 lb · 90 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers
$204.19/cwt
+3.16 vs last sale · ≈ $1,070/hd at 524 lb · 71 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers
$186.11/cwt
≈ $966/hd at 519 lb · 66 head
Receipts
| Head | This sale | Last sale | Last year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total receipts | 1,375 | 974 | 2,514 |
| Feeder cattle | 955 | 623 | 604 |
| Slaughter cattle | 320 | 305 | 1,410 |
| Replacement cattle | 100 | 46 | 500 |
Market comments — USDA reporter
New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓
Feeder Steers
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 313 | 313 | 2 | 240.00 | $240.00 | $751 | — |
| 360–385 | 373 | 2 | 230.00–235.00 | $232.42 | $867 | — |
| 425–435 | 432 | 21 | 210.00–223.50 | $217.69 | $940 | — |
| 453–488 | 473 | 28 | 208.50–215.00 | $212.29 | $1,004 | — |
| 506–549 | 524 | 71 | 198.00–207.00 | $204.19 | $1,070 | — |
| 551–591 | 577 | 40 | 195.00–200.00 | $198.98 | $1,148 | — |
| 600–621 | 620 | 33 | 190.00–202.00 | $201.65 | $1,250 | — |
| 650–676 | 655 | 34 | 192.00–200.50 | $198.69 | $1,301 | — |
| 743–748 | 746 | 4 | 189.50–191.00 | $190.25 | $1,419 | — |
| 760–787 | 779 | 9 | 182.00–188.00 | $185.32 | $1,444 | +1.92 |
| 817–840 | 828 | 12 | 178.00–179.50 | $179.37 | $1,485 | -4.13 |
| 868 | 868 | 6 | 173.00 | $173.00 | $1,502 | -4.63 |
| 939 | 939 | 31 | 176.50 | $176.50 | $1,657 | — |
| 970–990 | 974 | 11 | 164.00–167.00 | $165.64 | $1,613 | — |
| 1005–1020 | 1010 | 3 | 155.00–161.50 | $159.31 | $1,609 | — |
| 1060 | 1060 | 1 | 152.00 | $152.00 | $1,611 | — |
| 1200 | 1200 | 1 | 141.00 | $141.00 | $1,692 | — |
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 570 | 570 | 1 | 175.00 | $175.00 | $998 | — |
| 602–623 | 610 | 5 | 170.00–172.00 | $171.18 | $1,044 | — |
| 702–745 | 719 | 6 | 165.00–173.00 | $169.92 | $1,222 | — |
| 750–785 | 768 | 2 | 168.00–171.00 | $169.47 | $1,302 | — |
| 800–843 | 829 | 3 | 160.00–172.00 | $168.14 | $1,394 | — |
| 875 | 875 | 1 | 161.00 | $161.00 | $1,409 | — |
Feeder Heifers
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 290 | 290 | 1 | 200.00 | $200.00 | $580 | — |
| 372–390 | 381 | 11 | 186.00–188.00 | $186.37 | $710 | — |
| 412–433 | 422 | 9 | 190.00–195.00 | $193.15 | $815 | — |
| 450–479 | 473 | 60 | 182.00–189.50 | $186.35 | $881 | — |
| 515–524 | 519 | 66 | 181.00–192.00 | $186.11 | $966 | — |
| 555–580 | 561 | 34 | 174.00–185.00 | $182.65 | $1,025 | — |
| 608–640 | 619 | 3 | 168.00–171.00 | $169.03 | $1,046 | — |
| 675–697 | 680 | 13 | 172.50–180.00 | $174.27 | $1,185 | — |
| 718–728 | 725 | 12 | 177.50–180.00 | $179.13 | $1,299 | +11.13 |
| 790 | 790 | 1 | 169.00 | $169.00 | $1,335 | — |
| 805 | 805 | 10 | 172.50 | $172.50 | $1,389 | +7.50 |
| 805–840 | 828 | 3 | 163.00–170.00 | $167.73 | $1,389 | +2.73 |
| 865–895 | 885 | 39 | 165.25–172.75 | $167.53 | $1,483 | +1.03 |
| 891 | 891 | 51 | 167.00 | $167.00 | $1,488 | +0.50 |
| 924–947 | 938 | 16 | 155.00–165.00 | $162.55 | $1,525 | -1.26 |
| 950–990 | 967 | 13 | 154.00–163.00 | $159.23 | $1,540 | -4.86 |
| 1024–1043 | 1029 | 10 | 155.00–160.00 | $158.09 | $1,627 | — |
| 1103 | 1103 | 10 | 150.25 | $150.25 | $1,657 | — |
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 387 | 387 | 3 | 173.00 | $173.00 | $670 | — |
| 415 | 415 | 2 | 175.00 | $175.00 | $726 | — |
| 473–480 | 475 | 3 | 162.00–167.00 | $165.32 | $785 | — |
| 528 | 528 | 10 | 170.00 | $170.00 | $898 | — |
| 563 | 563 | 3 | 166.00 | $166.00 | $935 | — |
| 693 | 693 | 12 | 162.50 | $162.50 | $1,126 | — |
| 730 | 730 | 1 | 168.00 | $168.00 | $1,226 | +8.00 |
| 815–820 | 817 | 7 | 158.00–158.50 | $158.28 | $1,293 | +2.28 |
| 877–880 | 879 | 7 | 153.00–158.00 | $155.86 | $1,370 | — |
| 985 | 985 | 1 | 152.00 | $152.00 | $1,497 | — |
Feeder Bulls
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 527 | 527 | 3 | 160.00 | $160.00 | $843 | — |
| 601–635 | 610 | 9 | 154.00–161.00 | $158.71 | $968 | — |
| 703–746 | 736 | 13 | 155.00–158.00 | $157.49 | $1,159 | — |
| 815 | 815 | 2 | 154.00–155.00 | $154.50 | $1,259 | — |
| 1169–1196 | 1180 | 15 | 115.50–118.50 | $116.72 | $1,377 | — |
Slaughter Cows
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Dressing | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1170–1430 | 1304 | 80-85% | 4 | 72.00–77.00 | $75.75 | $988 | — |
| 1180–1685 | 1425 | 80-85% | 54 | 75.00–84.00 | $80.90 | $1,153 | — |
| 1245–1780 | 1449 | 80-85% | 52 | 78.00–89.00 | $82.49 | $1,195 | — |
| 1288–1710 | 1490 | 80-85% | 8 | 72.00–80.00 | $77.57 | $1,156 | -15.01 |
| 1353–1680 | 1574 | 80-85% | 27 | 90.50–94.00 | $91.31 | $1,437 | +8.03 |
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Dressing | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1010–1260 | 1133 | 85-90% | 13 | 70.00–76.00 | $72.87 | $826 | — |
| 975–1330 | 1161 | 85-90% | 25 | 75.00–86.50 | $78.23 | $908 | -3.83 |
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Dressing | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1630–1658 | 1641 | 75-80% | 5 | 86.00–88.00 | $87.19 | $1,431 | — |
Slaughter Bulls
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd | Δ last sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1150–1565 | 1328 | 10 | 75.00–84.00 | $79.98 | $1,062 | -18.57 |
| 1298–2175 | 1749 | 34 | 85.00–97.50 | $89.62 | $1,567 | — |
| 1285–2405 | 1789 | 17 | 95.00–105.00 | $100.10 | $1,791 | — |
Stock Cows
| Weight (lb) | Avg wt | Age | Stage | Head | Price range | Avg $ | ≈ $/hd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 818–1345 | 951 | (<2 yrs) | Open | 23 | 100.00–114.00 | $110.49 | $1,051 |
| 950–1530 | 1233 | Young (2-4 yrs) | Open | 46 | 85.00–98.00 | $89.74 | $1,106 |
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.
Compared to last week: Steer calves and yearlings were too lightly tested previously to develop a market trend. Heifer calves were too lightly tested to develop a market trend. Yearling heifers were too lightly tested either this sale or last week to develop an accurate market trend, however slightly higher undertones were noticed on heifers under 900 lbs and slightly lower undertones were noticed on heifers over 900 lbs. Demand today was light to moderate for moderate offerings. Weigh up cows sold on mostly light to moderate demand for moderate offerings. Slaughter cows sold mostly 1.00-3.00 lower on boning and lean cows. Breaking cows were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend. Feeding cows sold steady to 3.00 lower in a narrow comparison. Slaughter bulls sold 5.00-8.00 lower.