Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock Auction Market Report

Riverton, Wyoming · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, September 21, 2021

2,020 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 4-weight M&L 1 steers $192.11/cwt +10.77 vs last sale · ≈ $916/hd at 477 lb · 271 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $160.33/cwt +12.33 vs last sale · ≈ $833/hd at 520 lb · 193 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $168.44/cwt +12.67 vs last sale · ≈ $785/hd at 466 lb · 173 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,020 643 1,551
Feeder cattle 1,908 507 1,238
Slaughter cattle 62 82 170
Replacement cattle 50 54 143

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday slaughter cows on a light offering steady instances 1.00-5.00 higher with slaughter bulls firm. Not enough yearlings for a good market test. Good demand and participation for feeder calves special today with higher overtones noted on all classes.

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
279 279 5 220.00 $220.00 $614 —
310 310 10 215.00 $215.00 $666 —
362–395 385 138 208.00–220.00 $212.48 $818 +22.13
402–448 423 34 181.00–201.00 $191.56 $810 +7.56
450–489 473 172 178.00–196.00 $188.15 $890 +6.81
483 fancy 483 99 199.00 $199.00 $961 —
501–538 512 142 166.00–184.75 $175.70 $900 +6.70
551–587 573 146 160.00–173.75 $169.75 $973 —
606 606 8 160.00 $160.00 $970 +4.34
685 685 14 152.00 $152.00 $1,041 —
716–720 718 13 146.50–160.25 $154.94 $1,112 +9.94
772 772 11 149.00 $149.00 $1,150 +6.50
811 811 5 148.50 $148.50 $1,204 —
1022 1022 6 133.50 $133.50 $1,364 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
397 397 5 195.50 $195.50 $776 —
405 405 6 172.00 $172.00 $697 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
347 347 33 200.00 $200.00 $694 +25.00
353–395 382 94 175.00–189.00 $186.29 $712 +14.29
410–448 430 142 162.25–180.00 $172.12 $740 +9.62
454–485 466 173 159.00–174.00 $168.44 $785 +12.67
511 511 93 161.60 $161.60 $826 +13.60
504–532 528 100 150.00–160.00 $159.15 $840 +11.15
569–587 576 19 143.00–152.50 $148.93 $858 —
657 657 12 142.00 $142.00 $933 —
815 815 17 144.25 $144.25 $1,176 —
844 844 7 139.50 $139.50 $1,177 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
326 326 6 171.00 $171.00 $557 —
446 446 13 156.00 $156.00 $696 —
478–495 490 28 151.00–154.00 $153.16 $750 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1552–1590 1565 75-80% 3 59.50–60.50 $59.84 $936 —
1525–1700 1610 75-80% 8 66.50–69.50 $67.32 $1,084 +1.82
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1240 1240 80-85% 1 53.50 $53.50 $663 —
1305–1382 1341 80-85% 5 57.50–60.00 $59.30 $795 +0.30
1310–1410 1373 80-85% 3 63.00–65.00 $64.00 $879 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1010–1115 1063 85-90% 2 42.50–45.00 $43.81 $466 —
960–1210 1130 85-90% 4 51.00–54.50 $53.24 $602 -0.56
1170 1170 85-90% 2 60.00 $60.00 $702 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1580 1580 2 70.00 $70.00 $1,106 —
1325–2340 1734 6 74.50–81.00 $77.08 $1,337 —
1765 1765 1 68.00 $68.00 $1,200 —
1665–1960 1819 4 83.50–86.00 $84.54 $1,538 -0.14

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
845 845 (<2 yrs)Open 1 91.00 $91.00 $769
950–1143 1095 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 4 41.00–46.00 $42.08 $461
1302–1357 1317 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 10 56.00–59.50 $57.03 $751
1200–1455 1419 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 7 70.00–72.50 $70.30 $998

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1022 1022 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 4 1,200.00 $1,200.00
1189–1304 1225 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 16 700.00–785.00 $728.28
1190–1440 1253 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 4 750.00–860.00 $781.62
1395 1395 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 1 825.00 $825.00

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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.