Cattle Market Pulse

Townsend Livestock Auction Market Report

Madison, Florida · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, January 9, 2024

257 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 4-weight M&L 2 bulls $231.90/cwt ≈ $1,106/hd at 477 lb · 19 head
light 4-weight M&L 2 bulls $232.83/cwt +7.83 vs last sale · ≈ $971/hd at 417 lb · 14 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 2 bulls $252.40/cwt ≈ $972/hd at 385 lb · 10 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 257 299 490
Feeder cattle 220 240 410
Slaughter cattle 37 45 80
Replacement cattle — 14 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Townsend Livestock closed the last two weeks for the Christmas holidays.

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
310–330 320 2 240.00–262.50 $251.60 $805 —
410–420 413 3 227.50–240.00 $231.73 $957 -1.05
505–540 525 3 220.00–225.00 $221.71 $1,164 +11.20
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
310–330 320 2 280.00–282.50 $281.29 $900 —
460–490 475 2 260.00–270.00 $265.16 $1,260 —
570–580 575 2 270.00–277.50 $273.72 $1,574 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–330 325 2 230.00–235.00 $232.46 $755 +31.16
380–390 388 10 215.00–225.00 $216.96 $842 +10.14
405–440 433 8 210.00–227.50 $214.17 $927 -2.52
460–490 480 9 210.00–222.50 $213.99 $1,027 +9.07
530–540 535 4 215.00–225.00 $219.95 $1,177 +23.83
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–290 275 2 240.00–245.00 $242.64 $667 +2.82
360–385 377 6 237.50–240.00 $238.30 $898 -9.22
505–540 518 6 230.00–235.00 $232.44 $1,204 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
260–285 266 4 240.00–245.00 $241.34 $642 -11.23
380–390 385 10 245.00–260.00 $252.40 $972 —
405–440 417 14 230.00–240.00 $232.83 $971 +7.83
460–490 477 19 225.00–240.00 $231.90 $1,106 —
520–540 527 3 210.00–220.00 $213.42 $1,125 —
620–645 630 3 200.00–215.00 $208.37 $1,313 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315–330 323 2 265.00–270.00 $267.44 $864 -2.02
360–385 373 2 260.00–270.00 $264.83 $988 +5.03
410–430 420 2 252.50–260.00 $256.34 $1,077 +10.40

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1010–1205 1041 85-90% 13 86.00–92.00 $87.02 $906 +3.87
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1525–1705 1591 75-80% 7 89.00–95.00 $92.93 $1,479 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1225 1220 80-85% 2 94.00–99.00 $96.51 $1,177 —

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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.