Cattle Market Pulse

South Branch Valley Livestock Exchange Market Report

Moorefield, West Virginia · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 5, 2021

90 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest South Branch Valley Livestock Exchange report →

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 90 62 69
Feeder cattle 27 23 20
Slaughter cattle 48 36 43
Replacement cattle — 3 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

***SEE SPECIAL FAT CATTLE SALE ***

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
560 560 1 96.00 $96.00 $538 -2.00
730 730 1 70.00 $70.00 $511 —
840 840 1 71.00 $71.00 $596 -27.00
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
275 275 1 96.00 $96.00 $264 —
450 450 1 75.00 $75.00 $338 —
565 565 1 80.00 $80.00 $452 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
550 550 1 134.00 $134.00 $737 —
635 635 1 130.00 $130.00 $826 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
605 605 1 94.00 $94.00 $569 —
680 680 1 106.00 $106.00 $721 +6.00
Medium and Large 4 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 1 109.00 $109.00 $338 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 375 1 112.00 $112.00 $420 —
520 520 1 90.00 $90.00 $468 -27.99
630 630 1 92.00 $92.00 $580 -12.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300 300 1 115.00 $115.00 $345 —
415 415 1 100.00 $100.00 $415 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
358 358 2 105.00 $105.00 $376 —
585 585 1 90.00 $90.00 $526 —
675 675 1 89.00 $89.00 $601 —
725 725 1 87.00 $87.00 $631 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
175 175 1 126.00 $126.00 $220 —
580 580 1 103.00 $103.00 $597 —
650 650 1 91.00 $91.00 $592 -17.00
760 760 1 83.00 $83.00 $631 —
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
700 700 1 83.00 $83.00 $581 —
835 835 1 80.00 $80.00 $668 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
725–1215 1056 80-85% 4 70.00–81.00 $75.30 $795 —
765–1860 1380 80-85% 28 50.00–69.00 $56.85 $785 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
990 990 85-90% 1 32.00 $32.00 $317 +13.44
1040–1345 1167 85-90% 3 37.00–57.00 $45.49 $531 -5.89

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1065–2415 1673 9 57.00–86.00 $72.20 $1,208 —

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Bucks Billies

N/N/A ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
180 180 1 350.00 $350.00 —

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Ewes

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
181 181 4 109.00 $109.00 $197 —

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Wooled

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
85 85 6 270.00 $270.00 $230 —
110 110 1 245.00 $245.00 $270 —
118–130 122 3 190.00–224.00 $202.08 $247 —

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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.