Cattle Market Pulse

St. Onge Livestock Auction Market Report

St. Onge, South Dakota · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Friday, October 28, 2022

6,892 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest St. Onge Livestock Auction report →

light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $222.72/cwt +12.35 vs last sale · ≈ $1,160/hd at 521 lb · 875 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $204.75/cwt +8.08 vs last sale · ≈ $1,263/hd at 617 lb · 776 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $195.53/cwt +1.95 vs last sale · ≈ $1,034/hd at 529 lb · 772 head
HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 6,892 6,180 8,598
Feeder cattle 6,892 6,180 8,598

Compared to last week: Feeder Steers under 500 lbs, steady to 3.00 lower; 500 - 650 lbs, 7.00 to 10.00 higher; over 650 lbs, steady to 2.00 higher. Heifers under 450 lbs, steady to 2.00 lower; 450 - 500 lbs, 9.00 higher; over 500 lbs, mostly steady. Very good demand for several long strings of large packages and load lots. This nice offering of light to moderate fleshed cattle, many with spring and fall vaccinations, sold on a very active market. We also saw the outcomes of a cold spring, with short ears and tails on some of the offerings, leading to a larger spread in some of the pricing. Next week includes two Calf Specials, one Wednesday, Nov. 2., and the next, Friday, Nov. 4.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
332 332 11 262.50 $262.50 $872
352–397 376 91 254.00–266.00 $258.30 $971 -3.02
400–447 435 271 221.00–254.00 $247.97 $1,079 -0.15
453–498 476 200 220.00–248.00 $231.01 $1,100 -4.72
501–548 521 875 204.00–233.00 $222.72 $1,160 +12.35
556 556 14 195.00 $195.00 $1,084 -8.71
551–594 571 725 206.00–219.50 $213.44 $1,219 +9.73
601–648 617 776 183.50–214.75 $204.75 $1,263 +8.08
662–689 681 139 184.00–198.50 $192.11 $1,308 +2.34
702–738 707 73 186.00–192.75 $191.69 $1,355 +7.19
756 756 17 170.50 $170.50 $1,289
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
446 446 11 227.50 $227.50 $1,015 +22.48
478–495 486 22 216.00–226.00 $221.02 $1,074 +7.59
563–589 579 69 183.00–205.00 $199.25 $1,154 +4.67
619–628 624 12 172.00–186.00 $179.05 $1,117

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Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
329 329 6 225.00 $225.00 $740 +14.89
354–399 388 157 210.00–223.00 $213.06 $827 -16.08
410–439 431 215 192.00–219.00 $211.76 $913 +1.56
460–497 479 398 193.00–223.00 $211.62 $1,014 +8.81
507–549 529 772 177.00–209.50 $195.53 $1,034 +1.95
559–599 579 540 177.00–194.00 $187.10 $1,083 +1.62
620–643 625 101 171.50–183.50 $179.81 $1,124 -1.24
657–690 672 47 159.00–182.50 $173.49 $1,166 +1.70
738–744 741 11 163.50–166.50 $165.13 $1,224 -18.37
857 857 7 172.00 $172.00 $1,474
880 880 19 174.50 $174.50 $1,536
958 958 13 168.50 $168.50 $1,614 +2.70
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
447 447 11 209.00 $209.00 $934 +22.00
517 517 7 177.00 $177.00 $915
587 587 10 174.00 $174.00 $1,021 +9.30
934 934 25 160.00 $160.00 $1,494

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Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
507 507 5 194.00 $194.00 $984

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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.