Cattle Market Pulse

Townsend Livestock Auction Market Report

Madison, Florida · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, February 17, 2026

307 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $535.63/cwt +70.41 vs last sale · ≈ $2,791/hd at 521 lb · 17 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1 heifers $560.80/cwt -11.87 vs last sale · ≈ $2,103/hd at 375 lb · 16 head
light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $521.24/cwt +15.71 vs last sale · ≈ $2,205/hd at 423 lb · 14 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 307 435 367
Feeder cattle 270 390 337
Slaughter cattle 37 35 30
Replacement cattle — 10 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to one week ago: Slaughter cattle mostly steady. Feeder cattle 2.00 to 5.00 higher.

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
260–275 263 5 755.00–800.00 $779.07 $2,049 +14.63
315–340 328 6 730.00–790.00 $761.15 $2,497 +75.46
360–385 373 8 610.00–690.00 $651.34 $2,429 +20.53
405–440 423 12 580.00–650.00 $616.45 $2,608 +41.21
455–485 470 14 550.00–630.00 $591.28 $2,779 +83.45
505–540 521 17 510.00–560.00 $535.63 $2,791 +70.41
560–580 571 9 460.00–480.00 $471.28 $2,691 +15.95
860 860 2 325.00 $325.00 $2,795 —
1155–1190 1173 10 250.00–260.00 $255.07 $2,992 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–340 330 4 610.00–680.00 $646.06 $2,132 —
360–380 375 4 490.00–550.00 $535.60 $2,008 -54.93
420–440 433 3 470.00–530.00 $510.62 $2,211 -9.85
460–480 470 4 460.00–540.00 $500.85 $2,354 +32.44
510–535 523 8 440.00–490.00 $465.60 $2,435 —
555–580 568 4 430.00–440.00 $435.11 $2,471 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
315–335 330 4 580.00–600.00 $595.23 $1,964 —
365–385 375 16 530.00–590.00 $560.80 $2,103 -11.87
405–440 423 14 490.00–550.00 $521.24 $2,205 +15.71
455–485 470 14 480.00–540.00 $510.96 $2,402 +35.56
520–540 530 2 420.00–460.00 $440.38 $2,334 +5.36
555–570 565 3 405.00–445.00 $431.90 $2,440 +31.90
615–630 625 3 350.00–380.00 $370.16 $2,314 —
660–675 670 3 310.00–335.00 $326.79 $2,189 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
265–280 273 2 500.00–570.00 $535.96 $1,463 -56.88
360–380 375 4 450.00–520.00 $503.20 $1,887 —
460–480 473 3 460.00–470.00 $466.76 $2,208 —
520–540 533 3 400.00–430.00 $420.25 $2,240 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205–235 220 2 800.00–830.00 $816.02 $1,795 —
260–280 272 10 755.00–830.00 $797.90 $2,170 +69.73
305–340 323 6 710.00–790.00 $752.17 $2,430 —
365–385 375 4 610.00–650.00 $630.53 $2,364 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
410–430 423 3 450.00–470.00 $463.54 $1,961 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1420–1725 1573 75-80% 12 163.00–172.00 $167.94 $2,642 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
985–1195 1090 85-90% 10 148.00–157.00 $152.93 $1,667 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1240–1385 1313 80-85% 6 163.00–172.00 $167.75 $2,203 —

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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.