Cattle Market Pulse

South Central Regional Stockyards Market Report

Vienna, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, December 15, 2021

1,422 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest South Central Regional Stockyards report →

light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $188.93/cwt +8.71 vs last sale · ≈ $998/hd at 528 lb · 68 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $160.09/cwt -0.16 vs last sale · ≈ $945/hd at 590 lb · 63 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $155.61/cwt +2.85 vs last sale · ≈ $803/hd at 516 lb · 50 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,422 1,772 517
Feeder cattle 886 1,650 273
Slaughter cattle 200 112 144
Replacement cattle 336 10 100

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday, feeder steers and heifers under 550 lbs steady to 2.00 higher, over 550 lbs steady to 2.00 lower. Slaughter cows steady. Demand good. Supply moderate. Less numbers and quality than last weeks feeder offering. Special cow sale followed the feeders with several nice bred cows and pairs in the mix.

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
365 365 3 210.00 $210.00 $766 +11.17
420–435 429 8 191.00–196.00 $194.17 $833 -9.01
450–495 477 5 183.00–191.00 $187.98 $897 -8.16
510–530 522 36 174.00–191.00 $186.65 $974 +6.43
535 value added 535 32 191.50 $191.50 $1,025 —
580–585 583 8 160.00–164.50 $162.12 $945 +3.12
590 value added 590 8 166.25 $166.25 $981 —
600–630 617 34 160.00–166.50 $162.37 $1,002 -4.92
650–670 665 33 152.00–162.50 $160.42 $1,067 +9.67
710–740 712 37 152.00–158.00 $157.49 $1,121 -11.40
765 765 4 150.00 $150.00 $1,148 -6.86
920 920 3 134.50 $134.50 $1,237 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–380 367 9 192.00–199.00 $194.72 $715 +3.21
400–445 423 26 181.00–197.00 $189.40 $801 —
450–490 474 8 173.00–188.00 $181.81 $862 +4.30
500–520 508 6 171.00–175.00 $173.33 $881 +7.90
560–595 value added 590 63 156.00–160.75 $160.09 $945 —
600–620 611 11 151.50–160.00 $156.66 $957 +3.16
645 value added 645 18 158.00 $158.00 $1,019 —
650–685 661 9 151.00–154.00 $151.69 $1,003 -1.62
705 705 4 152.00 $152.00 $1,072 +2.25
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
685 685 3 147.00 $147.00 $1,007 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
490 490 3 164.00 $164.00 $804 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
375 375 4 177.00 $177.00 $664 +4.63
415–440 431 8 168.00–176.00 $170.89 $737 -2.85
455–470 462 16 154.50–169.00 $161.12 $744 +0.51
500–540 516 50 149.00–162.00 $155.61 $803 +1.99
550–580 value added 562 20 151.75–152.00 $151.94 $854 —
580 580 5 141.00 $141.00 $818 -1.00
615–630 626 18 145.50–146.50 $145.77 $913 -11.44
670 670 3 146.00 $146.00 $978 -3.50
945 945 10 127.50 $127.50 $1,205 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305–330 317 6 155.00–176.00 $164.53 $522 —
365 thin fleshed 365 3 178.00 $178.00 $650 +3.00
360–395 383 6 166.00–173.00 $169.66 $650 —
440 440 4 159.00–169.00 $164.00 $722 +8.73
460–490 469 7 152.50–157.00 $153.84 $722 +0.64
515 515 6 152.50 $152.50 $785 +6.35
600–640 618 8 141.00–145.50 $143.37 $886 —
650 value added 650 3 145.50 $145.50 $946 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410 value added 410 7 151.00 $151.00 $619 —
485 value added 485 13 141.00 $141.00 $684 —
580 value added 580 4 134.00 $134.00 $777 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
420–445 435 5 160.00–173.00 $165.02 $718 -9.27
500–540 516 9 155.00–160.00 $157.92 $815 —
600–635 617 13 135.00–145.00 $140.30 $866 —
825–830 828 4 114.00–119.00 $116.49 $965 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
955–1195 1067 85-90% 3 22.00–28.00 $25.88 $276 -10.12
1045–1185 1089 85-90% 11 38.00–43.25 $40.55 $442 +4.55
1050–1215 1152 85-90% 38 48.00–54.50 $50.41 $581 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1135–1220 1156 80-85% 4 49.50–55.00 $50.95 $589 —
1095–1545 1267 80-85% 36 55.00–61.00 $57.90 $734 —
1280–1495 1388 80-85% 2 62.50–64.00 $63.31 $879 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1435 1435 75-80% 1 55.50 $55.50 $796 —
1310–1675 1448 75-80% 19 60.00–64.50 $61.66 $893 —
1300–1650 1525 75-80% 10 64.75–69.00 $65.48 $999 -1.31

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1510–2115 1682 6 52.00–72.00 $64.91 $1,092 —
1220–2110 1773 6 75.00–82.00 $79.33 $1,407 —
2280 2280 1 92.25 $92.25 $2,103 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
957–1515 1268 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 55 925.00–1,300.00 $1,072.58
1190–1535 1315 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 32 800.00–1,000.00 $901.24
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1090–1370 1264 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 44 1,485.00–1,900.00 $1,655.51

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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
1000 1000 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 4 1,275.00 $1,275.00 —
1000–1280 1182 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 46 1,075.00–1,900.00 $1,403.26 —
1230 1230 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 11 1,075.00 $1,075.00 —

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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.