Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock Auction Market Report

Riverton, Wyoming · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, May 2, 2023

1,224 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $249.77/cwt ≈ $1,209/hd at 484 lb · 61 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $239.00/cwt ≈ $1,635/hd at 684 lb · 58 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 steers $278.51/cwt ≈ $1,298/hd at 466 lb · 48 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,224 391 558
Feeder cattle 723 112 157
Slaughter cattle 241 99 157
Replacement cattle 260 180 244

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last Tuesday sale on a pair and back to grass special; slaughter cows unevenly steady with instance 2.00 lower, slaughter bulls 2.00-3.00 higher instances 9.00, with feeder cows going back to grass or feed good demand with good buyer participation. Heifer pairs reputation quality higher again this week. Demand good to moderate with more thin cows and bulls coming to market.

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
418–421 419 18 273.00–283.00 $278.54 $1,167 —
454–472 466 48 270.00–283.00 $278.51 $1,298 —
549 549 15 282.50 $282.50 $1,551 —
598 598 5 252.50 $252.50 $1,510 —
603–621 615 14 237.50–250.00 $241.88 $1,488 —
713–731 720 16 212.00–220.50 $217.26 $1,564 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
486 486 9 260.00 $260.00 $1,264 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
395–396 396 21 265.00–271.00 $269.00 $1,065 —
420–447 429 27 250.00–260.00 $253.47 $1,087 —
452–496 484 61 237.50–255.00 $249.77 $1,209 —
509–538 515 25 236.00–242.50 $237.36 $1,222 —
572–582 574 35 235.00–250.00 $246.53 $1,415 —
622 622 7 181.00 $181.00 $1,126 —
636 636 31 245.00 $245.00 $1,558 —
684 684 58 239.00 $239.00 $1,635 —
734 734 6 198.00 $198.00 $1,453 —
783 783 10 186.00 $186.00 $1,456 —
787 787 29 188.25 $188.25 $1,482 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
540 540 14 200.00 $200.00 $1,080 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1220–1360 1267 80-85% 20 84.00–87.00 $85.98 $1,089 +1.59
1246–1395 1282 80-85% 23 88.00–93.00 $88.98 $1,141 +4.59
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1027–1190 1141 85-90% 22 80.00–86.00 $83.99 $958 -3.98
1150–1205 1182 85-90% 15 88.00–96.00 $89.01 $1,052 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1430–1520 1465 75-80% 3 86.00–89.50 $87.15 $1,277 +0.73
1515–1790 1622 75-80% 6 91.00–94.50 $92.87 $1,506 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1540 1540 1 91.00 $91.00 $1,401 —
1345–1925 1654 13 98.00–107.50 $103.79 $1,717 —
1606–2193 1989 13 108.00–119.50 $112.08 $2,229 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
750–971 thin fleshed 908 (<2 yrs)Open 18 167.50–183.00 $177.45 $1,611
850–1125 1027 (<2 yrs)Open 35 119.00–162.50 $139.99 $1,438
970–1198 1089 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 36 82.50–100.00 $90.12 $981
1265–1328 1318 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 6 85.50–86.00 $85.58 $1,128
1253–1536 1364 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 25 89.00–94.50 $91.93 $1,254

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1110 1110 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 15 1,250.00 $1,250.00
1117 1117 Young (2-4 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 7 1,275.00 $1,275.00
1144 1144 Aged (>8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 6 960.00 $960.00
1152 1152 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 2 1,350.00 $1,350.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
927–1102 1015 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 4 2,250.00–2,500.00 $2,364.22 —
1435 1435 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 8 2,350.00 $2,350.00 —

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Heifer Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1035–1205 1170 (<2 yrs)Open 58 2,950.00–3,025.00 $3,011.27 +700.50

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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.