Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock Auction Market Report

Riverton, Wyoming · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, May 18, 2021

796 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 8-weight M&L 1 heifers $125.35/cwt ≈ $1,029/hd at 821 lb · 63 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $126.75/cwt ≈ $992/hd at 783 lb · 32 head
light 8-weight M&L 1 steers $123.26/cwt ≈ $1,034/hd at 839 lb · 30 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 796 637 640
Feeder cattle 388 154 265
Slaughter cattle 144 190 148
Replacement cattle 264 293 227

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday, slaughter cows and bulls mostly steady with several high yielding bulls 3.00-5.00 higher. Feeder calves unevenly steady with package of reputation quality heifers higher overtones noted. Demand good demand and participation for cow/calf pairs with larger calves at side, over all demand moderate to 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
324 324 7 182.50 $182.50 $591 —
401 401 9 180.00 $180.00 $722 +11.00
492 492 9 161.00 $161.00 $792 ±0.00
599 599 15 142.00 $142.00 $851 —
646 646 6 136.00 $136.00 $879 -7.00
671 671 15 141.00 $141.00 $946 —
783 783 32 126.75 $126.75 $992 —
816–849 839 30 122.75–124.50 $123.26 $1,034 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
367 367 12 157.50 $157.50 $578 +2.50
412 412 7 142.50 $142.50 $587 —
500 500 8 143.00 $143.00 $715 —
613–625 619 13 133.00–140.00 $136.80 $847 —
679 679 7 128.00 $128.00 $869 +8.00
711 711 10 138.50 $138.50 $985 —
762–792 770 22 117.50–122.75 $121.28 $934 -3.72
821 821 63 125.35 $125.35 $1,029 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
528 528 5 133.00 $133.00 $702 —
600 600 6 135.50 $135.50 $813 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
990–1115 1069 85-90% 16 55.00–59.50 $58.59 $626 +2.18
1055–1205 1156 85-90% 45 60.00–65.00 $61.24 $708 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1345–1597 1520 75-80% 5 60.00–62.50 $61.59 $936 —
1578–1835 1655 75-80% 10 64.00–67.50 $65.96 $1,092 +5.87
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1210–1390 1270 80-85% 3 59.00–59.50 $59.18 $752 +0.38
1260–1425 1326 80-85% 8 60.00–66.50 $61.63 $817 +0.26

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
835–1215 1025 2 120.00 $120.00 $1,230 —
880–1505 1176 6 72.50–82.50 $77.81 $915 —
1450–1507 1488 3 72.50–78.50 $74.45 $1,108 —
1395–2080 1817 15 80.00–89.50 $86.52 $1,572 -2.98
1945–2310 2144 4 90.00–95.50 $92.74 $1,988 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
775–1036 910 (<2 yrs)Open 31 90.00–113.50 $98.36 $895
930–1210 1021 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 13 50.00–58.00 $54.70 $558
950–1540 1081 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 42 74.00–85.75 $82.19 $888
670–1255 1120 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 46 64.00–71.50 $66.41 $744
1230–1630 1409 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 46 58.00–66.00 $62.50 $881
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
795–1245 1097 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 17 59.50–63.00 $61.40 $674

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1110 1110 Young (2-4 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 3 825.00 $825.00
1130 1130 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,150.00 $1,150.00
1288 1288 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 3 775.00 $775.00
1350 1350 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,100.00 $1,100.00
1483 1483 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 3 910.00 $910.00
1508 1508 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 3 910.00 $910.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1260 1260 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 1,285.00 $1,285.00 +260.00
1315–1330 1323 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 2 750.00–975.00 $863.14 —
1347 1347 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 5 1,150.00 $1,150.00 —
1355 1355 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 8 1,510.00 $1,510.00 —
1425 1425 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 3 1,635.00 $1,635.00 —
1360–1527 1471 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 3 1,225.00–1,350.00 $1,263.51 —
1582 1582 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 9 1,500.00 $1,500.00 —
1700 1700 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 3 1,200.00 $1,200.00 —
1725 1725 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 2 1,275.00 $1,275.00 —

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Heifer Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
935–1004 991 (<2 yrs)Open 10 1,200.00–1,600.00 $1,497.92 —

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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.