Cattle Market Pulse

South Dakota Weekly Cattle Auction Summary

South Dakota · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Monday, December 27, 2021

7,579 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest South Dakota Weekly Cattle Auction Summary report →

heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $176.84/cwt +5.87 vs last sale · ≈ $1,199/hd at 678 lb · 479 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $163.08/cwt +0.59 vs last sale · ≈ $1,005/hd at 616 lb · 477 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $170.61/cwt +14.03 vs last sale · ≈ $1,319/hd at 773 lb · 419 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 7,579 3,011 7,583
Feeder cattle 6,736 2,522 7,170
Slaughter cattle 843 489 413

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week: Only 1 reported auction this week, no price comparisons to be made. Very good demand was seen for all weights of steers and heifers after the Christmas break. Cattle feeders are feeling very bullish on the future months of the fat cattle market and are eager to get feeder cattle bought. The weather has been cold, but dry, helping to keep cattle clean and feedyard pens in good shape, and cattle are growing and gaining well. Feeder cattle producers are ready to capitalize on the strength of the market and are getting their cattle consigned to sell as all auction locations resume their regular sale schedules and are expecting large receipts. Below zero weather will return at midweek but no snow in the forecast. Slaughter cows steady to 2.00 higher, bulls 2.00 to 3.00 lower.

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
369 369 14 218.00 $218.00 $804 —
425–430 427 7 206.00–212.00 $209.41 $894 -4.68
469–494 482 33 198.00–213.00 $202.64 $977 -0.23
504–547 521 106 185.50–199.00 $193.24 $1,007 -7.53
550–579 562 55 179.50–200.00 $189.82 $1,067 +6.06
601–647 636 122 171.50–184.00 $177.88 $1,131 +22.88
636 thin fleshed 636 164 198.75 $198.75 $1,264 —
677 thin fleshed 677 71 185.00 $185.00 $1,252 —
651–697 678 408 168.00–180.50 $175.42 $1,189 +4.45
703–735 thin fleshed 719 159 180.00–181.00 $180.49 $1,298 —
701–737 725 244 170.00–178.50 $174.10 $1,262 +8.11
752–792 773 419 163.50–175.25 $170.61 $1,319 +14.03
802–846 827 353 159.75–170.75 $166.03 $1,373 +10.33
845 845 16 158.50 $158.50 $1,339 +2.80
856–883 876 409 154.00–165.75 $163.18 $1,429 +9.18
900–946 936 120 158.10–164.85 $161.64 $1,513 +23.64
956–985 979 300 161.85–165.60 $164.54 $1,611 +17.04
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1002–1049 1028 812 161.60–166.10 $163.08 $1,676 +9.15
1064–1079 1072 102 154.25–162.10 $158.15 $1,695 —
1178 1178 101 158.10 $158.10 $1,862 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1380–1387 1382 34 139.00–143.00 $140.47 $1,941 —
1424–1477 1441 72 142.50–145.50 $144.14 $2,077 —
1445 1445 7 137.00 $137.00 $1,980 —
1446 1446 31 148.50 $148.50 $2,147 —
1430–1491 1462 34 147.00 $147.00 $2,149 +6.79
1514 1514 8 138.00 $138.00 $2,089 —
1524–1583 1549 125 144.00–146.00 $144.55 $2,239 —
1605–1645 1623 72 144.00–146.75 $145.24 $2,357 +1.74
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310 310 4 220.00 $220.00 $682 +10.00
564 564 6 171.00 $171.00 $964 -6.00
629 629 5 169.00 $169.00 $1,063 +8.95
656–680 666 24 147.00–163.00 $157.16 $1,047 +2.34
766–768 767 34 142.00–161.50 $156.35 $1,199 —
807 807 7 145.00 $145.00 $1,170 —
857 857 5 137.50 $137.50 $1,178 —
943–945 944 23 141.50–149.00 $143.46 $1,354 —
960–969 966 21 136.00–148.00 $140.55 $1,358 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
439 439 15 196.00 $196.00 $860 +10.64
487 487 39 185.00 $185.00 $901 +7.67
500 500 3 174.00 $174.00 $870 -1.53
502–544 531 73 177.50–187.00 $181.21 $962 +5.68
554–591 565 108 161.50–175.00 $169.85 $960 +3.21
602–646 616 469 155.50–175.00 $163.37 $1,006 +0.88
633 633 8 146.00 $146.00 $924 -16.49
651–690 661 174 153.00–160.25 $158.67 $1,049 +10.76
689 thin fleshed 689 73 169.00 $169.00 $1,164 —
700–735 714 214 153.50–162.00 $156.88 $1,120 +7.21
755–787 769 264 151.50–161.50 $156.56 $1,204 —
807–839 826 36 143.00–145.00 $144.19 $1,191 -4.31
809–849 841 303 149.75–158.25 $154.64 $1,301 +6.14
865–895 885 243 145.00–153.75 $151.59 $1,342 —
908–923 918 104 151.85–155.85 $153.30 $1,407 +3.48
953 953 120 147.00 $147.00 $1,401 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
329 329 4 197.50 $197.50 $650 —
397 397 7 170.00 $170.00 $675 —
420 420 3 173.00 $173.00 $727 +7.00
496 496 4 166.00 $166.00 $823 +8.00
506–528 509 24 144.50–161.00 $155.86 $793 +0.86
569–595 581 65 143.00–160.50 $157.34 $914 +2.04
618 618 16 154.00 $154.00 $952 +6.40
716 716 17 147.00 $147.00 $1,053 +7.00
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1254–1420 1352 17 146.00–146.25 $146.15 $1,976 —
1372 1372 14 140.00 $140.00 $1,921 —
1330–1412 1374 61 142.00–146.50 $145.27 $1,996 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1260 1260 3 131.00 $131.00 $1,651 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
733 733 12 133.00 $133.00 $975 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
813–1243 1033 85-90% 21 17.50–37.00 $25.25 $261 —
1018–1535 1257 85-90% 29 41.00–54.00 $46.32 $582 —
1164–1356 1257 85-90% 18 60.00–63.00 $61.53 $773 —
1135–1554 1338 85-90% 27 54.00–59.00 $56.86 $761 +1.00
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1400 1400 80-85% 1 47.00 $47.00 $658 —
1235–1558 1407 80-85% 34 61.00–66.00 $63.68 $896 —
1135–1777 1450 80-85% 27 50.00–60.00 $57.69 $837 —
1515 1515 80-85% 1 67.00 $67.00 $1,015 +8.65
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1133–1752 1365 75-80% 8 77.00–77.50 $77.24 $1,054 —
1240–1728 1491 75-80% 19 70.00–75.00 $72.91 $1,087 —
1437–1698 1517 75-80% 13 65.00–68.00 $67.09 $1,018 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1945 1945 65-75% 4 81.00 $81.00 $1,575 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1102–2390 1472 6 68.00–86.00 $79.34 $1,168 —
1900–2255 2047 5 87.00–89.00 $87.59 $1,793 —

↑ Back to top

Dairy Steers

N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1518–1621 1567 27 119.00–126.00 $120.51 $1,888 +7.74

↑ Back to top

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.