Cattle Market Pulse

Roanoke Stockyards Market Report

Roanoke, Alabama · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 20, 2023

957 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Roanoke Stockyards report →

heavy 3-weight M&L 1 bulls $279.50/cwt +8.12 vs last sale · ≈ $1,034/hd at 370 lb · 15 head
heavy 2-weight M&L 1 heifers $253.27/cwt +5.65 vs last sale · ≈ $704/hd at 278 lb · 14 head
light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $240.04/cwt +12.16 vs last sale · ≈ $1,008/hd at 420 lb · 13 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 957 872 1,420
Feeder cattle 602 683 1,015
Slaughter cattle 190 150 277
Replacement cattle 165 39 128

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to one week ago: Feeder steers sold 4.00 to 6.00 higher, feeder heifers sold 5.00 to 8.00 higher, feeder bulls sold 8.00 to 10.00 higher. Slaughter cows sold 2.00 to 3.00 higher, slaughter bulls sold 3.00 lower. Replacement cows and pairs sold mostly steady.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325–335 328 6 265.00–270.00 $266.70 $875 -8.30
375 375 2 265.00 $265.00 $994 +3.00
415–435 425 2 260.00–265.00 $262.44 $1,115 +7.44
505–525 515 2 245.00–246.00 $245.49 $1,264 +4.03
560–570 563 3 244.00–245.00 $244.34 $1,376 +6.72
615 615 1 228.00 $228.00 $1,402 +3.50
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
335 335 2 262.00 $262.00 $878 —
385 385 2 252.00 $252.00 $970 —
435 435 2 250.00 $250.00 $1,088 —
515–545 535 3 235.00–238.00 $235.96 $1,262 +5.96
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
445 445 2 278.00 $278.00 $1,237 +6.00
515 515 2 259.00 $259.00 $1,334 +9.83

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275–285 278 14 250.00–260.00 $253.27 $704 +5.65
310–325 318 6 245.00–250.00 $247.44 $787 +3.97
365–395 382 12 240.00–248.00 $243.53 $930 +3.58
405–440 420 13 235.00–244.00 $240.04 $1,008 +12.16
455–490 468 7 230.00–238.00 $232.66 $1,089 +11.33
515–545 527 5 215.00–219.00 $217.35 $1,145 +6.35
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255–290 279 12 240.00–248.00 $244.09 $681 +3.44
315–345 328 10 235.00–242.00 $238.22 $781 +3.12
355–395 384 11 230.00–238.00 $232.46 $893 +0.86
410–435 418 6 220.00–228.00 $224.92 $940 +4.48
460–475 473 11 218.00–226.00 $220.28 $1,042 +5.28
545 545 2 210.00 $210.00 $1,144 +6.91
580 580 1 200.00 $200.00 $1,160 +1.32
665 665 1 185.00 $185.00 $1,230 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275–285 277 5 230.00–232.00 $230.41 $638 +2.75
310 310 2 230.00 $230.00 $713 +5.00
390 390 2 226.00 $226.00 $881 +5.78
425–445 440 4 215.00–219.00 $218.03 $959 +8.03
535–540 536 8 200.00–205.00 $201.26 $1,079 +7.95
575–590 586 4 190.00–195.00 $191.23 $1,121 —
675 675 1 180.00 $180.00 $1,215 +5.00

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
270 270 2 290.00 $290.00 $783 +10.63
325–345 336 7 280.00–290.00 $284.14 $955 +9.91
365–395 370 15 275.00–286.00 $279.50 $1,034 +8.12
405–445 430 10 272.00–282.00 $276.94 $1,191 +6.74
465–480 471 12 240.00–278.00 $271.00 $1,276 +4.83
515–525 522 6 234.00–240.00 $238.34 $1,244 +2.90
555–580 569 7 225.00–230.00 $227.53 $1,295 -0.79
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 3 280.00 $280.00 $770 —
325 325 3 270.00 $270.00 $878 +2.00
370–385 381 8 265.00–270.00 $267.89 $1,021 +5.17
435–445 442 9 262.00–268.00 $265.58 $1,174 +5.06
475–490 480 4 260.00–266.00 $263.01 $1,262 +12.15
525–545 533 5 224.00–231.00 $228.14 $1,216 +4.14
575 575 3 218.00 $218.00 $1,254 -0.51
625 625 8 200.00 $200.00 $1,250 -3.15
670 670 1 190.00 $190.00 $1,273 -4.24
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
345 345 4 260.00 $260.00 $897 +8.99
365–385 380 4 250.00–260.00 $252.40 $959 +2.40
425–445 435 4 245.00–250.00 $247.44 $1,076 -0.09
465–490 482 3 242.00–245.00 $242.97 $1,171 +3.95
570 570 3 211.00 $211.00 $1,203 +4.99
640 640 1 195.00 $195.00 $1,248 +1.00
675–685 682 3 178.00–180.00 $179.34 $1,223 —
770–780 775 2 168.00–170.00 $169.01 $1,310 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
905–1230 1107 80-85% 32 86.00–91.00 $88.39 $978 —
905–1290 1114 80-85% 23 92.00–97.00 $94.37 $1,051 +0.16
1065–1385 1225 80-85% 10 99.00–103.00 $100.51 $1,231 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
835–1135 994 85-90% 13 80.00–85.00 $82.31 $818 +1.14
775–1280 1017 85-90% 15 74.00–79.00 $76.78 $781 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1305–1425 1345 75-80% 3 102.00–106.00 $104.59 $1,407 —
1275–1540 1385 75-80% 6 95.00–100.00 $97.37 $1,349 —
1310–1555 1438 75-80% 4 90.00–92.00 $91.31 $1,313 +2.40

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1575 1575 1 121.00 $121.00 $1,906 —
1510–1725 1626 8 102.00–105.00 $104.11 $1,693 —
1620–1790 1708 9 108.00–113.00 $110.70 $1,891 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— fancy — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 12 1,600.00–1,700.00 $1,666.67
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 19 1,300.00–1,550.00 $1,407.89
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 33 1,200.00–1,450.00 $1,331.82
— fancy — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 1,550.00–1,650.00 $1,591.67
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,400.00 $1,400.00
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,150.00 $1,150.00
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 9 1,000.00–1,175.00 $1,063.89
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 4 1,000.00–1,150.00 $1,093.75

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 26 1,700.00–1,950.00 $1,859.62 —
— fancy — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 12 2,000.00–2,300.00 $2,175.00 —
Small 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
— — Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 1,250.00–1,400.00 $1,325.00 —

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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.