Cattle Market Pulse

Sterling Livestock Commission Market Report

Sterling, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, August 10, 2022

531 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Sterling Livestock Commission report →

light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $175.62/cwt ≈ $1,470/hd at 837 lb · 55 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $173.15/cwt ≈ $1,193/hd at 689 lb · 53 head
light 3-weight M&L 1 steers $258.50/cwt +18.50 vs last sale · ≈ $832/hd at 322 lb · 40 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 531 1,463 823
Feeder cattle 520 1,118 823
Slaughter cattle 10 249 0
Replacement cattle 1 96 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last sale: Feeder steers were 8.00 to 9.00 lower and heifers were 7.00 to 8.00 lower. Replacement cattle were too thinly tested to quote. Slaughter cows and bulls had no test. Trade activity active and demand were moderate to good. Today's run consisted of a mix of yearling cattle coming off grass, with a few light weight calves coming straight off the cows. The next available report will occur as receipts warrant.

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
271 271 16 281.00 $281.00 $762 +6.00
322 322 40 258.50 $258.50 $832 +18.50
472 472 3 215.00 $215.00 $1,015 -2.50
725 725 8 182.00 $182.00 $1,320 —
782 782 23 184.00 $184.00 $1,439 -8.00
828–848 837 55 174.00–181.50 $175.62 $1,470 —
862 862 9 171.00 $171.00 $1,474 -9.00
965 965 1 161.00 $161.00 $1,554 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
251 251 6 310.00 $310.00 $778 —
326 326 9 244.00 $244.00 $795 —
371 371 11 252.50 $252.50 $937 —
424 424 5 235.00 $235.00 $996 —
788 788 8 177.50 $177.50 $1,399 —
823 823 11 173.00 $173.00 $1,424 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
557 557 5 197.00 $197.00 $1,097 -4.21
713–748 725 6 176.00–179.00 $177.97 $1,290 —
763 763 2 176.00 $176.00 $1,343 +0.03
880 880 2 158.00 $158.00 $1,390 -8.12

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
265 265 23 233.00 $233.00 $617 —
326 326 23 242.00 $242.00 $789 +11.00
374 374 5 230.00 $230.00 $860 +12.00
517–533 526 7 173.00–180.00 $177.05 $931 -4.95
573 573 4 172.00 $172.00 $986 —
658–695 689 53 172.50–176.50 $173.15 $1,193 —
726 726 24 171.50 $171.50 $1,245 -7.50
801–841 821 14 160.00–166.50 $163.17 $1,340 —
920–946 933 16 158.50–159.00 $158.75 $1,481 —
1060 1060 1 125.00 $125.00 $1,325 +3.00
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
324 324 13 225.00 $225.00 $729 —
400 400 13 225.00 $225.00 $900 —
706–735 716 12 166.50–167.50 $166.84 $1,195 —
Large 2-3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
173 173 5 225.00 $225.00 $389 —
524 524 9 100.00 $100.00 $524 —
577 577 9 96.00 $96.00 $554 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
600–620 607 3 148.00–168.00 $161.19 $978 —
863–870 867 9 146.00–159.00 $152.78 $1,325 +3.28
903 903 2 136.00 $136.00 $1,228 —
Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
416 416 6 90.00 $90.00 $374 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 470 3 182.00 $182.00 $855 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
985 985 1 128.00 $128.00 $1,261 —
1151 1151 14 127.50 $127.50 $1,468 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1170–1405 1276 80-85% 7 71.00–77.50 $75.07 $958 +1.80
1420 1420 80-85% 1 82.50 $82.50 $1,172 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1085–1335 1210 85-90% 2 66.50–69.50 $68.15 $825 —

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1685 1685 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 1 1,325.00 $1,325.00 $22,326 —

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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.