Cattle Market Pulse

Townsend Livestock Auction Market Report

Madison, Florida · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, October 19, 2021

794 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 3-weight M&L 2 steers $147.08/cwt -8.02 vs last sale · ≈ $546/hd at 371 lb · 14 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1 heifers $135.42/cwt -5.64 vs last sale · ≈ $492/hd at 363 lb · 13 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 2 heifers $126.98/cwt -10.45 vs last sale · ≈ $477/hd at 376 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 794 808 581
Feeder cattle 710 640 528
Slaughter cattle 84 82 53
Replacement cattle — 86 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to one week ago: Slaughter cows steady to 2.00 lower. Slaughter bulls not well tested. Feeder cattle firm.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–340 335 4 147.50–152.00 $148.57 $498 -4.21
360–380 371 14 145.00–150.00 $147.08 $546 -8.02
410–440 421 8 140.00–145.00 $143.04 $602 +0.31
460–480 473 6 135.00–140.00 $138.38 $655 +10.83
505–540 523 4 135.00–137.50 $136.21 $712 +13.40
560–580 569 10 125.00–130.00 $127.51 $726 +4.84
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315–340 326 7 160.00–165.00 $162.76 $531 —
420–440 433 3 152.00–160.00 $154.58 $669 -0.79
520–535 530 8 135.00–147.50 $139.32 $738 +6.86
560–585 570 5 130.00–137.50 $136.03 $775 +2.74
615–645 632 7 125.00–130.00 $127.08 $803 -14.61
750–765 758 2 122.50–125.00 $123.74 $938 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–280 270 4 157.50–165.00 $161.11 $435 +15.07
310–330 317 9 142.50–145.00 $144.13 $457 -3.65
360–395 363 13 135.00–140.00 $135.42 $492 -5.64
420–440 433 6 135.00–140.00 $136.62 $592 —
520–540 535 4 125.00–130.00 $126.21 $675 +6.28
560–585 573 4 125.00–130.00 $127.45 $730 +9.54
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
305–340 322 9 120.00–125.00 $123.24 $397 —
370–380 375 6 120.00–125.00 $122.53 $459 —
405–430 420 5 110.00–120.00 $113.86 $478 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315–340 328 4 130.00–135.00 $132.40 $434 -5.12
355–390 376 10 122.50–132.50 $126.98 $477 -10.45
410–430 422 5 125.00–130.00 $126.94 $536 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–290 275 4 150.00–155.00 $152.36 $419 -2.46
470–480 477 3 130.00–132.50 $130.82 $624 +7.11
560–580 569 7 120.00–125.00 $122.81 $699 +8.35
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–335 318 3 155.00–160.00 $158.25 $503 —
420–435 428 4 150.00–155.00 $152.54 $653 —
460–485 468 4 150.00–152.50 $151.61 $710 +19.18
Medium and Large 3 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
405–430 413 3 110.00–115.00 $113.27 $468 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1035–1240 1138 85-90% 24 44.00–50.00 $47.27 $538 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1185–1345 1260 80-85% 15 52.00–57.00 $54.49 $687 -6.44

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1985 1985 1 91.00 $91.00 $1,806 —

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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.