Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock Auction Market Report

Riverton, Wyoming · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, December 19, 2023

583 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 4-weight M&L 1 steers $324.50/cwt ≈ $1,408/hd at 434 lb · 33 head
light 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $261.18/cwt ≈ $1,134/hd at 434 lb · 32 head
light 9-weight M&L 1 heifers $188.00/cwt ≈ $1,713/hd at 911 lb · 25 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 583 246 927
Feeder cattle 331 246 927
Slaughter cattle 71 — 0
Replacement cattle 181 — 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compare to last Tuesday sale, on last sale of 2023; slaughter cows steady with slaughter bulls steady to instances 2.00-3.00 higher. Feeder calves unevenly steady on limited test with few instances 1.00-2.00 higher. Demand moderate. Next sale will be January 9, 2024 with a Special Feeder Calf sale.

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
359 359 10 321.00 $321.00 $1,152 —
413–447 434 33 320.00–332.00 $324.50 $1,408 —
472 472 9 319.00 $319.00 $1,506 +13.63
524 524 11 296.00 $296.00 $1,551 +16.00
655 655 9 235.00 $235.00 $1,539 +10.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
280 280 7 230.00 $230.00 $644 —
337 337 6 260.00 $260.00 $876 —
375 375 5 252.50 $252.50 $947 -2.50
432–436 434 32 252.50–268.00 $261.18 $1,134 —
467 467 14 262.00 $262.00 $1,224 +7.24
523 523 5 230.00 $230.00 $1,203 —
558 558 18 233.00 $233.00 $1,300 —
710 710 10 201.00 $201.00 $1,427 —
911 911 25 188.00 $188.00 $1,713 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
475 475 5 232.50 $232.50 $1,104 —
733 733 7 170.00 $170.00 $1,246 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
975–1105 1056 85-90% 7 70.00–77.00 $74.03 $782 —
1165–1195 1172 85-90% 10 78.50–83.00 $80.00 $938 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1295 1250 80-85% 7 79.50–85.50 $81.50 $1,019 —
1255–1365 1285 80-85% 6 73.50–77.50 $76.38 $981 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1515–1690 1603 75-80% 2 79.50–81.00 $80.29 $1,287 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1015–1685 1515 5 107.00–110.00 $109.15 $1,654 —
1600–2145 1843 10 105.00–113.00 $109.55 $2,019 —
1745–2305 1943 3 91.00–100.00 $96.46 $1,874 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
700–1051 934 (<2 yrs)Open 6 101.00–113.00 $110.00 $1,027
936 thin fleshed 936 (<2 yrs)Open 8 135.00 $135.00 $1,264
910–1180 1026 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 11 57.00–61.00 $59.40 $609
988–1250 1148 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 22 79.00–88.00 $82.01 $941
1110–1242 1185 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 7 71.50–79.50 $76.29 $904
1265–1470 1381 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 16 81.00–88.50 $85.58 $1,182

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1139 1139 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 35 1,975.00 $1,975.00
1267 1267 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 14 1,525.00 $1,525.00
1238–1386 1331 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 16 1,025.00–1,225.00 $1,155.21
1340 1340 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 11 1,280.00 $1,280.00

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Bred Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
867 867 (<2 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 4 1,550.00 $1,550.00

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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.