Cattle Market Pulse

Unionville Livestock Market Report

Unionville, Missouri · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, February 20, 2024

1,834 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Unionville Livestock Market report →

light 9-weight M&L 1 steers $241.42/cwt ≈ $2,216/hd at 918 lb · 186 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $320.83/cwt +9.44 vs last sale · ≈ $1,851/hd at 577 lb · 73 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $243.36/cwt +20.97 vs last sale · ≈ $1,622/hd at 666 lb · 72 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,834 1,243 736
Feeder cattle 1,670 1,186 667
Slaughter cattle 164 57 69

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to the last sale two weeks ago, steers mostly 5.00 to 10.00 higher with some 7 wt steers up to 20.00 higher. Heifers under 550 lbs traded sharply higher, heavier weights firm to 3.00 higher. Slaughter cows 5.00 to 10.00 higher. A couple extra players made for very active trade throughout the day with several market toppers coming late in the sale. Heifer calves weighing 400-550 lbs in particular took a dramatic jump, narrowing what had been a wide gap with their steer mates. Supply moderate, demand good to very good.

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
365 365 6 358.00 $358.00 $1,307 —
404–445 424 22 328.00–354.00 $336.12 $1,425 +10.69
431 thin fleshed 431 20 354.00 $354.00 $1,526 —
450–498 481 25 319.00–338.00 $326.13 $1,569 +2.79
494 thin fleshed 494 25 351.50 $351.50 $1,736 —
505–549 536 17 313.00–325.00 $319.74 $1,714 -2.36
554–583 577 73 313.50–326.00 $320.83 $1,851 +9.44
606–624 615 61 292.00–309.00 $301.43 $1,854 +7.77
638 638 8 288.50 $288.50 $1,841 -5.16
660–684 671 56 270.50–283.50 $277.76 $1,864 +1.67
701–740 718 67 264.00–285.75 $275.76 $1,980 +21.97
896 896 60 243.00 $243.00 $2,177 —
912–922 918 186 241.00–241.75 $241.42 $2,216 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
462–476 473 13 300.00–314.00 $303.16 $1,434 —
543 543 3 291.00 $291.00 $1,580 -3.00
587–599 592 44 289.00–301.50 $290.89 $1,722 +7.66
600–648 641 72 270.00–287.00 $278.17 $1,783 +5.03
656–693 681 61 261.00–268.50 $263.52 $1,795 +5.39
736 736 6 260.50 $260.50 $1,917 +13.84
776–784 780 26 245.00–258.50 $250.91 $1,957 +15.41
816 816 10 235.00 $235.00 $1,918 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
516 516 23 285.00 $285.00 $1,471 —
Medium 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
495 495 4 278.00 $278.00 $1,376 —
604 604 7 250.50 $250.50 $1,513 —
728 728 3 227.00 $227.00 $1,653 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
523 523 6 289.00 $289.00 $1,511 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
355–376 371 21 314.00–322.00 $320.18 $1,188 —
416–447 426 15 319.00–324.00 $322.25 $1,373 —
470 thin fleshed 470 30 318.00 $318.00 $1,495 —
455–497 478 13 286.00–297.00 $293.92 $1,405 +23.33
502–530 522 69 282.00–300.00 $295.99 $1,545 +32.66
554–589 575 37 263.00–272.50 $265.49 $1,527 +1.79
616–642 632 30 241.50–245.00 $242.87 $1,535 +0.26
708 708 12 231.75 $231.75 $1,641 +2.75
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395 395 4 290.00 $290.00 $1,146 +32.00
494 thin fleshed 494 4 290.00 $290.00 $1,433 —
509–543 520 19 275.00–280.00 $277.39 $1,442 +21.39
579–598 591 62 249.00–254.00 $251.45 $1,486 +5.64
608 608 4 240.00 $240.00 $1,459 +1.73
652–691 666 64 239.50–248.50 $245.47 $1,635 +23.08
670 unweaned 670 8 226.50 $226.50 $1,518 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
593–595 595 23 232.00–238.00 $233.30 $1,388 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
443 443 5 310.00 $310.00 $1,373 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1300–1495 1309 75-80% 30 109.00–115.50 $114.34 $1,497 —
1150–1735 1325 75-80% 25 103.00–111.50 $106.00 $1,404 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1200 1200 80-85% 1 111.00 $111.00 $1,332 +23.37
1085–1405 1222 80-85% 30 100.00–108.00 $105.51 $1,289 +17.88
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
960–1300 1158 85-90% 9 89.50–95.00 $91.45 $1,059 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1775 1775 1 111.00 $111.00 $1,970 —
1950 1950 1 119.00 $119.00 $2,320 —
2065 2065 1 131.00 $131.00 $2,705 —

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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.