Cattle Market Pulse

South Central Regional Stockyards Market Report

Vienna, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, May 20, 2026

1,562 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $453.15/cwt +2.39 vs last sale · ≈ $2,850/hd at 629 lb · 149 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $521.01/cwt +6.86 vs last sale · ≈ $2,746/hd at 527 lb · 111 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $433.12/cwt -11.86 vs last sale · ≈ $2,937/hd at 678 lb · 106 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,562 1,816 2,358
Feeder cattle 1,493 1,657 2,225
Slaughter cattle 49 109 103
Replacement cattle 20 50 30

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Wednesday, feeder steers steady, although unevenly so in the lighter weights. Feeder heifers steady. Slaughter cows 2.00-3.00 higher. Demand good. Supply moderate. Lots of nice cattle again this week with several consignments of reputation weaned fall calves weighing 600-725 lbs. Receipts were less than expected with heavy rain Monday and Tuesday holding some cattle back. Good buyer attendance. This Friday's Cattle on Feed report will be closely watched as the on feed total may be rising due to the slow pace of slaughter depending on where the placement number lands.

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
312–345 334 13 610.00–652.00 $637.72 $2,130 -14.45
374 374 4 610.00 $610.00 $2,281 -9.75
401–447 434 63 545.00–575.00 $562.40 $2,441 -25.01
450–499 476 88 520.00–563.00 $550.40 $2,620 +6.94
497 value added 497 16 544.00 $544.00 $2,704 —
500–545 527 111 490.00–540.00 $521.01 $2,746 +5.39
559–565 value added 563 36 490.00 $490.00 $2,759 —
569–599 587 51 449.00–489.00 $472.08 $2,771 -3.79
593 593 11 440.00 $440.00 $2,609 -35.87
612–645 value added 627 94 448.00–464.00 $456.00 $2,859 -14.50
601–645 632 55 434.00–458.00 $448.28 $2,833 +0.10
655–696 678 106 423.00–452.50 $433.12 $2,937 -4.59
710–728 713 55 409.50–415.50 $414.39 $2,955 —
780 value added 780 38 383.00 $383.00 $2,987 —
794 794 5 374.00 $374.00 $2,970 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
415–435 430 20 538.00–545.00 $540.83 $2,326 +40.83
485–492 489 4 508.00–515.00 $511.53 $2,501 +26.81
500–540 523 10 484.00–522.00 $501.32 $2,622 +25.27
563 563 8 441.00 $441.00 $2,483 +11.00
600 600 4 421.00 $421.00 $2,526 +8.25
731–741 733 13 368.00–407.00 $397.91 $2,917 —
796 796 10 356.50 $356.50 $2,838 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
486 486 4 522.00 $522.00 $2,537 —
552 552 7 466.00 $466.00 $2,572 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
600–646 621 11 386.00–420.00 $403.92 $2,508 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
450 450 5 507.00 $507.00 $2,282 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
332–345 335 9 542.50–575.00 $567.56 $1,901 -3.20
360–391 380 18 535.00–552.50 $543.18 $2,064 -10.12
420 value added 420 10 540.00 $540.00 $2,268 +4.00
416–446 435 40 512.00–540.00 $526.42 $2,290 +1.93
446 446 3 456.00 $456.00 $2,034 -68.49
458 458 3 457.50 $457.50 $2,095 -23.13
457–492 476 60 461.00–508.00 $476.31 $2,267 -4.32
500–538 520 37 438.00–460.00 $450.91 $2,345 +5.22
553–590 569 46 420.00–443.00 $431.03 $2,453 +39.03
572 value added 572 16 440.00 $440.00 $2,517 +16.00
618–625 621 33 406.00–410.00 $408.54 $2,537 -0.96
655–693 672 11 364.00–396.00 $379.80 $2,552 +3.25
729 729 9 352.50 $352.50 $2,570 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
350–395 378 11 524.00–535.00 $528.06 $1,996 +6.71
400–447 410 11 478.00–532.50 $515.20 $2,112 —
460–482 471 4 446.00–460.00 $452.84 $2,133 +1.31
605–622 614 4 377.00–390.00 $383.59 $2,355 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
400–410 407 6 530.00–560.00 $550.16 $2,239 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1120–1338 1276 80-85% 6 186.50–190.00 $189.49 $2,418 +50.49
1180–1505 1297 80-85% 11 174.00–187.00 $181.20 $2,350 +15.20
1567 1567 80-85% 2 155.00 $155.00 $2,429 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
735 735 85-90% 1 115.00 $115.00 $845 —
855–1145 1000 85-90% 4 130.00–154.00 $139.70 $1,397 —
1055 1055 85-90% 1 181.00 $181.00 $1,910 +1.82
980–1230 1108 85-90% 5 156.50–175.00 $165.80 $1,837 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1445–1675 1560 75-80% 2 190.00–195.00 $192.32 $3,000 —
1560 1560 75-80% 1 181.00 $181.00 $2,824 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1405 1405 1 195.50 $195.50 $2,747 —
1425–1880 1703 3 216.00–235.00 $223.83 $3,812 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1050–1457 1282 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 4 2,700.00–2,800.00 $2,762.49

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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.