Cattle Market Pulse

South Central Regional Stockyards Market Report

Vienna, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 1, 2024

1,072 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $290.69/cwt -0.62 vs last sale · ≈ $1,515/hd at 521 lb · 87 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $324.56/cwt -3.09 vs last sale · ≈ $1,719/hd at 530 lb · 86 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $294.46/cwt +3.46 vs last sale · ≈ $1,833/hd at 622 lb · 78 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,072 806 2,112
Feeder cattle 970 631 1,976
Slaughter cattle 82 145 136
Replacement cattle 20 30 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday, feeder steers under 550 lbs steady, over 550 lbs 2.00-4.00 higher based on limited comparisons with last week. Feeder heifers steady. Slaughter cows steady. Demand good to very good. Supply moderate. Good feeder offering with a little more age and condition in general including some nice consignments of yearlings. Bigger run expected next week with lots of reputation fall calves weighing 450-600 lbs. Cattle futures continue to be very unhelpful this week due to continuing bird flu concerns and lackluster beef cutout values.

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
300–345 339 8 380.00–400.00 $393.97 $1,336 +16.29
380–393 387 14 362.00–376.00 $367.29 $1,421 -5.90
420–432 422 15 350.00–360.00 $356.91 $1,506 +7.52
434 value added 434 6 356.00 $356.00 $1,545 —
452–487 461 25 327.00–358.00 $345.94 $1,595 -0.28
520 value added 520 5 334.00 $334.00 $1,737 +5.48
500–546 530 73 314.00–342.00 $325.51 $1,725 +8.51
531 531 8 310.00 $310.00 $1,646 -7.00
556–588 574 7 290.00–302.00 $294.98 $1,693 +5.98
550–591 576 41 309.00–320.50 $314.27 $1,810 +25.27
610 thin fleshed 610 13 314.75 $314.75 $1,920 —
605–638 625 65 284.00–305.50 $290.40 $1,815 -0.60
650–680 656 73 278.00–294.00 $291.93 $1,915 +30.93
700–745 720 26 261.75–279.50 $272.03 $1,959 +30.03
810–840 827 32 232.00–245.50 $237.79 $1,967 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350–395 368 5 335.00–349.00 $341.18 $1,256 +8.10
420–435 428 4 325.00–327.00 $326.02 $1,395 -8.98
457–470 464 4 312.00–317.00 $314.46 $1,459 —
515 thin fleshed 515 10 328.00 $328.00 $1,689 +8.00
600–602 601 17 268.00–284.00 $274.40 $1,649 -0.47

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
266 266 3 340.00 $340.00 $904 —
300–345 323 6 314.00–330.00 $322.76 $1,043 —
360–380 372 5 319.00–327.00 $322.10 $1,198 -10.04
400 value added 400 6 332.00 $332.00 $1,328 —
406 406 6 302.00 $302.00 $1,226 -24.67
415–418 418 16 320.00–324.00 $323.50 $1,352 -3.17
452–492 462 26 291.00–314.00 $305.15 $1,410 +7.68
466 466 4 281.00 $281.00 $1,309 -16.47
500–543 515 66 280.00–302.50 $294.62 $1,517 +3.31
525 value added 525 7 291.00 $291.00 $1,528 —
548 548 14 272.00 $272.00 $1,491 -19.31
550 550 4 254.00 $254.00 $1,397 -35.00
553–596 574 22 251.50–287.00 $266.89 $1,532 -22.11
603–612 605 22 250.00–260.50 $257.82 $1,560 +9.00
612 612 7 245.50 $245.50 $1,502 -3.32
657–698 662 57 238.50–246.00 $243.83 $1,614 —
731–732 731 7 226.00–231.00 $229.57 $1,678 +1.57
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
439 439 7 304.00 $304.00 $1,335 +11.70
493 493 6 284.50 $284.50 $1,403 +0.02
561–589 569 30 250.00–255.00 $254.00 $1,445 -7.86
623 623 5 240.00 $240.00 $1,495 -8.25
655–690 673 6 232.00–236.00 $233.95 $1,574 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
551 551 3 241.00 $241.00 $1,328 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400–430 415 4 319.00–326.00 $322.37 $1,338 —
505–521 515 7 269.00–278.00 $274.10 $1,412 —
552–570 561 4 266.00–306.00 $285.68 $1,603 +9.68
618 618 3 263.50 $263.50 $1,628 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1125–1350 1217 80-85% 18 115.25–124.00 $118.96 $1,448 +6.63
1250–1320 1285 80-85% 2 110.00–114.00 $111.95 $1,439 -16.34
1255–1320 1288 80-85% 2 124.50–125.00 $124.74 $1,607 -3.55
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
902–945 916 85-90% 3 77.50–82.00 $80.45 $737 +1.13
1005–1060 1038 85-90% 4 92.00–105.00 $96.91 $1,006 -12.37
945–1120 1040 85-90% 10 106.00–116.00 $109.88 $1,143 +0.60
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1375–1490 1416 75-80% 10 120.00–125.00 $122.41 $1,733 -3.59
1417 1417 75-80% 2 114.00 $114.00 $1,615 -12.00
1920 1920 75-80% 1 129.50 $129.50 $2,486 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1365–1875 1683 5 140.00–147.00 $145.06 $2,441 —
1815 1815 1 128.00 $128.00 $2,323 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1022–1278 1147 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 8 1,535.00–1,925.00 $1,820.07

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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.