Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock Market Report

Pratt, Kansas · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, December 21, 2023

2,554 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $321.44/cwt +23.52 vs last sale · ≈ $1,692/hd at 526 lb · 290 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $281.02/cwt +25.07 vs last sale · ≈ $1,716/hd at 611 lb · 216 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $246.90/cwt +8.90 vs last sale · ≈ $1,686/hd at 683 lb · 150 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 2,554 1,998 4,956
Feeder cattle 2,174 760 4,671
Slaughter cattle 348 453 220
Replacement cattle 32 785 65

Market comments — USDA reporter

**Final** *No sale next week December 28, 2023* Compared to last week, not enough of a comparison on Feeder Cattle to make an accurate market trend, a higher undertone is noted. Buyer attendance and demand is good. Slaughter Cows sold steady and Bulls sold 1.00 to 3.00 lower.

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
343 343 12 329.00 $329.00 $1,128 -5.00
415–437 thin fleshed 422 56 355.00–361.00 $357.85 $1,510 —
417–431 429 17 329.00–339.00 $337.86 $1,449 -1.08
466 466 6 300.00 $300.00 $1,398 -15.00
518–539 fancy 525 200 320.50–327.00 $324.90 $1,706 —
514–542 529 90 311.00–316.50 $313.74 $1,660 +15.82
562 562 12 302.00 $302.00 $1,697 +29.10
610 fancy 610 81 289.25 $289.25 $1,764 —
600–618 611 135 260.00–281.25 $276.08 $1,687 +20.13
656–696 683 150 238.00–260.00 $246.90 $1,686 +8.90
700–726 721 109 236.50–248.00 $238.61 $1,720 —
754–780 765 76 222.00–235.50 $232.88 $1,782 +18.97
800–840 818 131 212.00–226.50 $222.10 $1,817 +11.60
855 855 6 211.00 $211.00 $1,804 —
910–934 921 84 205.00–213.00 $208.22 $1,918 —
995 995 29 211.25 $211.25 $2,102 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
413–430 425 10 265.00–281.00 $276.33 $1,174 —
504–548 526 12 276.00–289.00 $282.77 $1,487 +14.77
561–590 582 27 249.00–272.00 $266.47 $1,551 +30.53
636–648 643 33 254.00–256.00 $254.90 $1,639 +15.40
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1071 1071 4 175.00 $175.00 $1,874 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
242 242 11 261.00 $261.00 $632 —
384–395 391 30 314.00–324.00 $320.73 $1,254 +15.73
421–440 thin fleshed 424 38 300.00–314.50 $309.01 $1,310 —
421–448 439 23 278.00–296.00 $290.82 $1,277 +17.82
464–483 fancy 480 109 293.00–302.00 $300.80 $1,444 —
484 thin fleshed 484 7 319.00 $319.00 $1,544 —
470–497 485 9 260.50–268.00 $263.73 $1,279 +5.71
516–542 524 52 244.00–267.75 $257.60 $1,350 +26.75
556–591 579 50 238.00–261.00 $247.81 $1,435 +19.92
602–645 611 103 229.00–251.00 $246.40 $1,506 +34.40
655–685 676 27 201.00–217.50 $209.59 $1,417 —
709–748 717 75 204.50–225.00 $208.79 $1,497 —
795 795 59 206.50 $206.50 $1,642 +8.52
800–825 812 43 190.00–197.50 $195.17 $1,585 +2.17
862 862 11 199.00 $199.00 $1,715 +7.25
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
225 225 15 230.00 $230.00 $518 —
445 445 4 266.00 $266.00 $1,184 +24.00
598 598 4 225.50 $225.50 $1,348 —
780 780 2 181.00 $181.00 $1,412 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1011 1011 4 189.00 $189.00 $1,911 +25.75

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
939–1425 1183 80-85% 142 81.00–100.00 $92.60 $1,095 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1131–1690 1347 75-80% 84 89.00–107.00 $100.62 $1,355 —
1522–1715 1554 75-80% 12 105.00–108.50 $107.86 $1,676 +2.42
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
945 945 85-90% 1 71.00 $71.00 $671 —
765–1265 1076 85-90% 47 79.00–92.00 $86.83 $934 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1115–2380 1501 10 84.00–114.00 $100.15 $1,503 —
2060–2085 2077 3 114.00–116.00 $114.66 $2,381 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
922–1328 1053 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 25 2,025.00–2,500.00 $2,215.40
1335 1335 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 2,400.00 $2,400.00
1825 1825 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,950.00 $1,950.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1118 1118 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 5 1,850.00 $1,850.00 —

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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.