Cattle Market Pulse

Sterling Livestock Commission Market Report

Sterling, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, October 25, 2023

1,315 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $245.47/cwt -17.21 vs last sale · ≈ $1,274/hd at 519 lb · 155 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $277.11/cwt -15.32 vs last sale · ≈ $1,585/hd at 572 lb · 91 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $304.22/cwt -12.81 vs last sale · ≈ $1,559/hd at 513 lb · 86 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,315 1,046 1,573
Feeder cattle 1,130 937 1,369
Slaughter cattle 160 109 200
Replacement cattle 25 — 4

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, trade and demand were steady. Todays feeder cattle supply was comprised mostly of calves coming straight off the cow, many being preconditioned. Feeder steers traded mostly 2.00 to 17.00 lower, with a light trade on cattle over 700 pounds. Feeder heifers traded 7.00 to 20.00 lower with a few trades sharply lower. Compared to last weeks trade on slaughter cows and bulls was moderate. Slaughter cows traded 2.00 to 5.00 lower and slaughter bulls traded 2.00 to 3.00 lower. Next available report will be available 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
341 341 8 340.00 $340.00 $1,159 —
412–439 426 55 310.00–340.00 $321.07 $1,368 —
456–499 474 72 300.00–322.50 $316.91 $1,502 —
506–513 value added 507 65 302.50–315.00 $310.23 $1,573 -6.80
529–530 530 21 282.50–287.50 $285.60 $1,514 —
557–594 unweaned 572 91 264.00–287.50 $277.11 $1,585 —
615–642 unweaned 623 47 264.00–271.00 $269.00 $1,676 —
659–685 unweaned 669 22 240.00–251.00 $247.42 $1,655 -5.04
710–728 unweaned 725 19 235.00 $235.00 $1,704 -17.01
827 827 9 231.00 $231.00 $1,910 —
987–990 989 25 227.00–230.50 $228.96 $2,264 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
319 319 5 325.00 $325.00 $1,037 —
477–479 479 27 273.00–292.50 $290.34 $1,391 —
510 510 3 262.00 $262.00 $1,336 —
548 unweaned 548 38 265.00 $265.00 $1,452 —
573–580 unweaned 578 15 245.00–256.00 $253.09 $1,463 —
615–648 unweaned 645 54 237.75–247.50 $238.49 $1,538 —
677 unweaned 677 5 232.50 $232.50 $1,574 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455 value added 455 3 285.00 $285.00 $1,297 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315 315 3 307.50 $307.50 $969 —
370–399 384 25 290.00–295.00 $292.49 $1,123 —
410–430 421 7 255.00–261.00 $258.50 $1,088 —
409–440 value added 432 41 276.00–277.00 $276.23 $1,193 -20.51
452 fancy 452 3 280.00 $280.00 $1,266 —
459–488 value added 464 25 265.00–275.00 $269.06 $1,248 +4.08
472 472 13 256.00 $256.00 $1,208 —
508–525 514 100 248.00–252.50 $251.17 $1,291 —
520–549 unweaned 528 55 231.00–243.00 $235.12 $1,241 —
553 553 4 247.00 $247.00 $1,366 —
564–591 unweaned 581 43 231.00–239.00 $234.38 $1,362 —
604 unweaned 604 16 244.00 $244.00 $1,474 —
651 unweaned 651 8 224.00 $224.00 $1,458 -31.00
811 811 11 223.00 $223.00 $1,809 —
946 946 9 216.00 $216.00 $2,043 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
303 303 6 252.00 $252.00 $764 —
453–490 value added 467 8 232.00–242.00 $235.94 $1,102 —
592 unweaned 592 12 228.00 $228.00 $1,350 —
663 unweaned 663 4 202.50 $202.50 $1,343 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
326 326 6 240.00 $240.00 $782 —
480 480 3 227.50 $227.50 $1,092 —
543 543 3 210.00 $210.00 $1,140 —
597 597 5 200.00 $200.00 $1,194 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
413 413 6 141.00 $141.00 $582 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
366 value added 366 9 300.00 $300.00 $1,098 —
597 value added 597 9 262.50 $262.50 $1,567 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1015–1165 1129 85-90% 14 51.00–67.00 $56.43 $637 —
1075–1315 1163 85-90% 24 65.00–80.00 $73.78 $858 -9.20
1130–1450 1198 85-90% 30 80.00–91.00 $85.05 $1,019 +2.07
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
920 920 80-85% 1 70.00 $70.00 $644 —
1155 1155 80-85% 2 119.00 $119.00 $1,374 —
1180 1180 80-85% 1 105.00 $105.00 $1,239 —
973–1495 1354 80-85% 49 88.00–100.00 $91.49 $1,239 —
1450–1520 1492 80-85% 3 72.00–85.00 $79.01 $1,179 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215 1215 75-80% 1 120.00 $120.00 $1,458 —
1335–1600 1474 75-80% 7 95.00–101.00 $99.16 $1,462 —
1785 1785 75-80% 1 91.00 $91.00 $1,624 —
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1710 1710 65-75% 1 103.00 $103.00 $1,761 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1165 1165 1 120.00 $120.00 $1,398 —
1215–2440 1701 4 71.00–97.00 $87.33 $1,485 -21.74
1635–1930 1783 6 101.00–110.00 $106.62 $1,901 —
1675–2060 1814 5 112.00–117.00 $114.12 $2,070 +10.79

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1147–1151 1149 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 16 136.00–138.50 $137.10 $1,575

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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.