Cattle Market Pulse

Townsend Livestock Auction Market Report

Madison, Florida · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, March 17, 2026

204 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $519.33/cwt +23.29 vs last sale · ≈ $2,212/hd at 426 lb · 12 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 204 314 342
Feeder cattle 153 274 310
Slaughter cattle 51 40 32

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to one week ago: Slaughter cattle 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
215–240 230 5 700.00–780.00 $750.09 $1,725 —
260–275 268 4 720.00–770.00 $745.70 $1,998 +43.77
310–330 320 4 670.00–760.00 $716.41 $2,293 +70.61
360–380 370 4 530.00–610.00 $571.08 $2,113 -10.26
405–430 422 3 565.00–590.00 $582.00 $2,456 +55.76
460–485 470 5 580.00–600.00 $591.74 $2,781 +81.52
510–540 525 8 490.00–540.00 $515.71 $2,707 +30.88
620 620 3 450.00 $450.00 $2,790 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
215–235 225 2 650.00–660.00 $655.22 $1,474 —
365–385 375 4 440.00–450.00 $445.13 $1,669 -46.21

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
255–270 263 4 620.00–640.00 $630.29 $1,658 +45.06
310–340 325 4 610.00–620.00 $615.23 $1,999 +44.16
360–385 375 9 460.00–530.00 $499.93 $1,875 -0.87
410–440 426 12 460.00–560.00 $519.33 $2,212 +23.29
465–480 475 3 510.00–550.00 $536.95 $2,551 +51.15
515–545 530 6 390.00–450.00 $419.15 $2,221 +18.90
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
265–285 278 3 500.00–530.00 $520.48 $1,447 —
320–345 333 4 440.00–510.00 $476.32 $1,586 +12.92
360–385 373 8 400.00–410.00 $405.17 $1,511 —
420–440 430 4 400.00–410.00 $405.12 $1,742 -5.58

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
205–235 220 4 600.00–640.00 $621.36 $1,367 +50.53
320–340 330 6 410.00–480.00 $446.06 $1,472 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455–475 465 4 500.00–580.00 $540.86 $2,515 +40.60

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1620–1745 1683 75-80% 16 172.00–175.00 $173.44 $2,919 —
1710–1745 1728 75-80% 4 175.00–181.00 $177.97 $3,075 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1410–1485 1448 80-85% 10 159.00–169.00 $164.13 $2,377 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1160–1205 1183 85-90% 8 156.00–162.00 $159.06 $1,882 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1655–2140 1776 4 191.00–198.00 $193.11 $3,430 —
1925–2310 2118 2 205.00–216.00 $211.00 $4,469 —

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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.