Cattle Market Pulse

Saluda Stockyards Market Report

Saluda, South Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, December 16, 2024

250 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 2 heifers $247.18/cwt +13.27 vs last sale · ≈ $1,434/hd at 580 lb · 20 head
light 5-weight M&L 2 heifers $247.66/cwt -2.58 vs last sale · ≈ $1,273/hd at 514 lb · 18 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 250 296 373
Feeder cattle 193 208 234
Slaughter cattle 27 58 79
Replacement cattle 2 11 25

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week feeder Steers and Heifers too few to trend, feeder Bulls 3.00 higher. Slaughter Cows and Bulls steady. Moderate offering of plain to average quality cattle with active buyer participation.

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
260 260 1 370.00 $370.00 $962 +5.00
325 value added 325 4 375.00 $375.00 $1,219 —
398 value added 398 2 357.50 $357.50 $1,423 -30.00
410 410 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,332 -27.57
415 fancy 415 1 360.00 $360.00 $1,494 —
532 532 6 292.50 $292.50 $1,556 +7.50
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
360 360 1 310.00 $310.00 $1,116 —
468 468 2 290.00 $290.00 $1,357 +20.00
505–545 525 2 265.00–285.00 $275.38 $1,446 +11.28
550 550 2 275.00 $275.00 $1,512 —
610 610 1 245.00 $245.00 $1,494 -13.50
724–730 725 7 210.00–215.00 $214.28 $1,554 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
425 425 1 200.00 $200.00 $850 +2.50
665 665 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,396 +70.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
245 245 1 280.00 $280.00 $686 —
325 325 1 285.00 $285.00 $926 +0.67
330 330 1 260.00 $260.00 $858 -24.33
355–360 358 2 282.50–295.00 $288.71 $1,034 +11.76
415 value added 415 3 282.50 $282.50 $1,172 —
400–440 424 5 250.00–270.00 $258.14 $1,095 -5.32
450–478 464 6 240.00–250.00 $244.07 $1,132 -8.45
505–524 514 18 240.00–259.00 $247.66 $1,273 -2.58
560–595 580 20 240.00–248.00 $247.18 $1,434 +13.27
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240 240 2 240.00–255.00 $247.50 $594 —
290 290 1 230.00 $230.00 $667 —
320 320 1 260.00 $260.00 $832 —
360 360 1 245.00 $245.00 $882 -8.70
440 440 1 220.00 $220.00 $968 -15.00
455 455 1 217.50 $217.50 $990 -2.50
575 575 1 210.00 $210.00 $1,208 —
603 603 2 210.00 $210.00 $1,266 -5.00
665 665 7 197.50 $197.50 $1,313 -1.68
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
308 308 2 302.50 $302.50 $932 -8.11
420 420 4 277.50 $277.50 $1,166 +2.47
428 fancy 428 2 300.00 $300.00 $1,284 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255 255 1 280.00 $280.00 $714 —
380 380 1 280.00 $280.00 $1,064 —
455–495 476 8 280.00–300.00 $283.60 $1,350 -4.24
510–535 521 4 270.00–275.00 $272.52 $1,420 +2.08
550–570 559 5 255.00–270.00 $266.94 $1,492 +8.22
618 618 2 242.50 $242.50 $1,499 —
700 700 1 225.00 $225.00 $1,575 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255–280 268 2 380.00 $380.00 $1,018 +5.05
315 315 2 357.50 $357.50 $1,126 -5.10
340 fancy 340 1 380.00 $380.00 $1,292 +2.50
365 value added 365 2 375.00 $375.00 $1,369 —
360–390 373 5 360.00–370.00 $364.93 $1,361 +15.42
390 390 1 340.00 $340.00 $1,326 -9.51
405 405 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,418 +19.24
454–455 454 5 312.50–317.50 $316.50 $1,437 +11.50
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
210 210 1 250.00 $250.00 $525 —
475–485 480 2 230.00–250.00 $240.10 $1,152 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
830–1205 1053 80-85% 5 100.00–107.00 $104.91 $1,105 —
885–1485 1213 80-85% 16 110.00–127.00 $117.07 $1,420 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1665–1970 1866 4 140.00–151.00 $146.74 $2,738 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
960 960 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,275.00 $1,275.00
980 980 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,250.00 $1,250.00

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Bucks Billies

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
20 20 1 40.00 $40.00 —
40 40 1 40.00 $40.00 —
40 40 1 45.00 $45.00 —
50 50 1 130.00 $130.00 +20.00
50 50 1 70.00 $70.00 -40.00
60 60 2 145.00–155.00 $150.00 +40.00
60 60 1 145.00 $145.00 +35.00
150 150 1 195.00 $195.00 —

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Families

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
50 50 Middle Aged (4-6 yrs)Open 1 140.00 $140.00 —

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Kids

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
10 10 1 35.00 $35.00 -20.00

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Nannies Does

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
40 40 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 120.00 $120.00 +60.00
40 40 —— 2 55.00–90.00 $72.50 +12.50
50 50 Middle Aged (4-6 yrs)Open 1 145.00 $145.00 +51.67
50 50 —— 1 65.00 $65.00 -28.33
50 50 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 135.00 $135.00 +41.67
50 50 Middle Aged (4-6 yrs)Open 1 160.00 $160.00 +66.67
50 50 —— 1 105.00 $105.00 +11.67
60 60 Middle Aged (4-6 yrs)Open 2 145.00–150.00 $147.50 +47.50
60 60 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 3 150.00–160.00 $156.67 +56.67
60 60 —— 1 140.00 $140.00 +40.00
70 70 Middle Aged (4-6 yrs)Open 1 125.00 $125.00 +5.00
80 80 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 145.00 $145.00 +15.00

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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.