Cattle Market Pulse

Townsend Livestock Auction Market Report

Madison, Florida · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, December 14, 2021

582 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $145.55/cwt +13.51 vs last sale · ≈ $630/hd at 433 lb · 13 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $138.10/cwt +4.29 vs last sale · ≈ $661/hd at 479 lb · 12 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1 heifers $146.29/cwt +7.59 vs last sale · ≈ $559/hd at 382 lb · 11 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 582 564 372
Feeder cattle 513 480 338
Slaughter cattle 69 84 34

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to one week ago: Slaughter cows and bulls steady. Feeder cattle firm.

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
260–275 268 2 195.00–200.00 $197.43 $529 —
310–340 318 4 185.00–190.00 $186.34 $593 +12.67
360–385 370 5 185.00–190.00 $187.92 $695 —
420–440 432 5 175.00–185.00 $178.89 $773 +4.01
460–490 473 7 165.00–172.50 $169.17 $800 -1.57
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–340 330 4 165.00–175.00 $169.85 $561 +8.32
360–380 368 5 165.00–170.00 $167.93 $618 —
420–440 432 5 162.50–172.50 $166.39 $719 +4.82
550–585 569 7 137.50–142.50 $140.30 $798 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–285 274 7 145.00–150.00 $147.03 $403 -16.38
310–345 331 10 145.00–150.00 $146.87 $486 —
360–390 382 11 145.00–150.00 $146.29 $559 +7.59
410–440 433 13 145.00–147.50 $145.55 $630 +13.51
460–485 479 12 137.50–140.00 $138.10 $661 +4.29
510–545 536 8 127.50–135.00 $129.28 $693 +0.24
560–585 573 6 122.50–125.00 $123.72 $709 —
670–675 672 9 120.00–125.00 $122.22 $821 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–285 280 10 130.00–140.00 $131.86 $369 -12.96
320–340 335 11 130.00–140.00 $132.61 $444 +8.38
360–385 374 7 130.00–140.00 $134.12 $502 -0.28
410–440 436 7 130.00–137.50 $131.01 $571 +4.36
460–485 473 4 130.00–135.00 $132.57 $627 +7.27
520–540 528 5 122.50–127.50 $125.45 $662 +5.50
560–585 575 5 120.00–122.50 $120.97 $696 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205–235 225 3 220.00–235.00 $224.56 $505 —
260–280 272 5 185.00–195.00 $188.82 $514 +18.59
320–340 332 5 175.00–185.00 $178.86 $594 —
355–380 370 4 185.00–190.00 $187.43 $693 +12.57
420–440 432 5 165.00–175.00 $168.89 $730 -2.96
460–480 475 4 160.00–170.00 $162.42 $771 -9.10
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
240–245 243 3 160.00–170.00 $166.71 $405 —
260–280 272 10 165.00–175.00 $168.82 $459 +14.05
320–345 337 3 165.00–170.00 $166.58 $561 +11.73
360–385 373 4 160.00–170.00 $164.83 $615 +11.27
430–440 436 5 150.00–160.00 $153.94 $671 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1020–1240 1114 80-85% 21 63.00–68.00 $65.38 $728 —
1095–1365 1247 80-85% 9 70.00–75.00 $71.37 $890 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1565–1875 1739 75-80% 8 63.00–70.00 $65.91 $1,146 -4.45

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1445–1715 1580 4 75.00–77.00 $76.09 $1,202 —
1895–2005 1950 2 95.00–97.00 $95.97 $1,871 —

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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.