Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report, La Junta, CO

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, November 17, 2020

1,909 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $133.50/cwt ≈ $761/hd at 570 lb · 86 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $119.67/cwt +1.67 vs last sale · ≈ $807/hd at 675 lb · 70 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $123.90/cwt ≈ $701/hd at 566 lb · 60 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,909 1,493 1,665
Feeder cattle 1,134 375 950
Slaughter cattle 250 200 200
Replacement cattle 525 918 515

Market comments — USDA reporter

Total receipts for Mon and Tues sale: 9231 Compared with last Tuesday: Steer and heifers calves mostly steady. Slaughter cows and bulls steady. Demand moderate to good.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
411 411 7 164.00 $164.00 $674 —
462–469 466 24 148.00–150.00 $149.26 $696 -5.74
511–546 526 14 140.00 $140.00 $736 -0.68
553–585 570 86 129.00–136.00 $133.50 $761 —
600–640 unweaned 627 56 127.00–131.00 $127.88 $802 -0.12
713–745 728 26 127.00–131.00 $129.38 $942 —
762–786 773 9 122.50–125.00 $123.87 $958 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
326 326 10 188.00 $188.00 $613 —
360 360 20 180.00 $180.00 $648 —
400 400 3 175.00 $175.00 $700 —
460 460 3 163.00 $163.00 $750 —
560 560 9 150.00 $150.00 $840 —
664–689 678 57 129.00–132.50 $130.51 $885 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
450–498 485 20 130.00–134.00 $131.13 $636 -4.87
505–535 524 26 120.00–124.00 $122.47 $642 —
553–583 566 60 121.00–127.00 $123.90 $701 —
618 unweaned 618 11 121.00 $121.00 $748 —
667–681 unweaned 672 51 118.00–118.50 $118.25 $795 —
662–691 682 19 120.00–125.00 $123.47 $842 +5.47
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
320–340 331 47 162.00–163.00 $162.45 $538 —
378 378 11 155.00 $155.00 $586 —
700–746 706 38 123.00–125.00 $124.72 $881 —
709 unweaned 709 4 121.00 $121.00 $858 —
769–780 778 36 123.00–124.00 $123.16 $958 —
891 891 28 122.50 $122.50 $1,091 -2.00

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1050–1215 1132 80-85% 3 54.00–56.00 $54.98 $622 —
1125–1375 1234 80-85% 53 47.00–54.00 $52.81 $652 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1365–1585 1431 75-80% 17 52.00–54.50 $52.43 $750 -0.46
1350–1665 1559 75-80% 6 55.00–58.00 $57.06 $890 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
970–1318 1103 85-90% 3 33.00–41.00 $37.06 $409 -6.35
960–1275 1114 85-90% 10 43.00–47.00 $45.43 $506 +2.02
935–1365 1191 85-90% 6 48.00–52.00 $50.16 $597 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1420–2015 1691 5 71.00–75.00 $73.38 $1,241 —
1525–2185 1876 16 76.00–81.00 $79.39 $1,489 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
910–1578 1255 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 283 47.00–59.00 $53.41 $670

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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.