Cattle Market Pulse

Sterling Livestock Commission Market Report

Sterling, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, October 16, 2024

972 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $318.85/cwt +18.90 vs last sale · ≈ $1,696/hd at 532 lb · 86 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $284.05/cwt +11.83 vs last sale · ≈ $1,650/hd at 581 lb · 71 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $277.11/cwt -5.19 vs last sale · ≈ $1,460/hd at 527 lb · 51 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 972 1,183 937
Feeder cattle 972 1,183 937

Market comments — USDA reporter

Trade activity and demand was moderate. With nearly all the feeder cattle coming off the cows and being preconditioned, feeder steers and heifers traded mostly 1.00 to 6.00 higher. Next available report will be Wednesday, October 23, 2024.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
368 unweaned 368 2 372.50 $372.50 $1,371 —
486 unweaned 486 11 335.00 $335.00 $1,628 —
531–543 unweaned 537 50 297.00–307.50 $302.04 $1,622 —
570–597 unweaned 581 71 280.00–290.50 $284.05 $1,650 +14.05
605–617 unweaned 616 26 274.00–276.00 $275.85 $1,699 —
653–697 unweaned 691 51 250.50–261.00 $252.70 $1,746 -3.30
712–728 unweaned 721 15 241.00–250.00 $244.09 $1,760 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
323 unweaned 323 7 400.00 $400.00 $1,292 —
426–432 unweaned 430 21 360.00–362.00 $361.43 $1,554 —
457–498 unweaned 462 50 340.00–360.00 $356.81 $1,648 —
515–539 unweaned 532 86 318.50–319.00 $318.85 $1,696 +18.90
602–619 unweaned 608 48 283.50–285.00 $284.46 $1,730 +1.13
650 unweaned 650 10 281.00 $281.00 $1,826 +10.65
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
333 unweaned 333 3 360.00 $360.00 $1,199 —
375–392 unweaned 380 10 350.00–362.50 $358.63 $1,363 —
486–494 unweaned 491 25 316.00–320.00 $317.43 $1,559 —
508–510 unweaned 509 9 286.00–291.00 $288.77 $1,470 —
591 unweaned 591 4 272.00 $272.00 $1,608 —
622 unweaned 622 3 275.00 $275.00 $1,710 +17.50
Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
325 325 5 282.50 $282.50 $918 —
453 453 18 270.00 $270.00 $1,223 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470–490 unweaned 480 6 312.50–318.00 $315.19 $1,513 —
572 unweaned 572 13 289.50 $289.50 $1,656 +19.50
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
504 unweaned 504 15 282.50 $282.50 $1,424 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
530 unweaned 530 4 274.00 $274.00 $1,452 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
401–440 unweaned 423 29 303.00–315.00 $306.78 $1,298 —
433 433 6 308.00 $308.00 $1,334 —
469–492 unweaned 482 26 281.00–291.00 $288.01 $1,388 —
514–539 unweaned 527 51 276.50–279.00 $277.11 $1,460 —
603–640 unweaned 620 38 249.50–256.50 $252.86 $1,568 —
921 921 4 202.50 $202.50 $1,865 -22.50
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–333 unweaned 329 12 310.00–320.00 $318.43 $1,048 —
356 356 7 307.50 $307.50 $1,095 —
409 409 7 306.00 $306.00 $1,252 —
438–448 unweaned 440 9 290.00–292.00 $291.55 $1,283 —
510 510 11 274.00 $274.00 $1,397 +9.68
542–545 unweaned 543 37 266.00–271.00 $269.21 $1,462 -2.79
562 562 13 260.00 $260.00 $1,461 ±0.00
580–590 unweaned 588 8 249.00–252.00 $249.74 $1,468 -0.64
612 unweaned 612 3 235.00 $235.00 $1,438 -7.96
Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
413 413 20 254.00 $254.00 $1,049 —
453 453 4 235.00 $235.00 $1,065 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
470 unweaned 470 9 272.00 $272.00 $1,278 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
361 361 7 277.50 $277.50 $1,002 —

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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.