Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 20, 2021

903 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $130.35/cwt ≈ $800/hd at 614 lb · 51 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 heifers $133.31/cwt -4.46 vs last sale · ≈ $761/hd at 571 lb · 49 head
light 6-weight L 1-2 steers $147.00/cwt ≈ $936/hd at 637 lb · 33 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 903 1,881 911
Feeder cattle 617 1,209 761
Slaughter cattle 190 260 150
Replacement cattle 96 412 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: All weights of feeder steers and heifers too lightly tested for a comparison. Slaughter cows and bulls mostly steady. Trade activity and demand moderate for feeders, moderate to good for slaughter cows and cow-calf pairs.

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
476 476 9 158.00 $158.00 $752 -23.44
559–591 586 27 151.00–153.50 $153.15 $897 -6.38
679–680 680 27 141.00 $141.00 $959 -7.00
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
510–518 516 9 162.00–167.00 $163.10 $842 -14.45
616 616 24 158.00 $158.00 $973 -7.37
789 789 15 133.00 $133.00 $1,049 —
Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
637 637 33 147.00 $147.00 $936 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
341 341 4 162.00 $162.00 $552 —
403 403 7 153.00 $153.00 $617 —
561–577 571 49 130.00–138.00 $133.31 $761 -4.46
602–620 614 51 127.50–133.00 $130.35 $800 —
Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
468 468 14 153.00 $153.00 $716 -2.89
522–535 530 26 151.00–152.00 $151.62 $804 +1.36
550–582 562 16 140.00 $140.00 $787 -4.00
689 689 19 134.49 $134.49 $927 +0.23
727 727 9 124.00 $124.00 $901 —
781–796 790 12 122.00–122.50 $122.29 $966 -2.21
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
100–140 119 5 125.00–335.00 $244.58 -133.88
150–175 161 5 225.00–350.00 $287.08 -87.92
225 225 1 385.00 $385.00 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
80–95 88 2 160.00–325.00 $249.57 —
100–145 124 6 160.00–350.00 $280.87 —
160–175 165 4 275.00–450.00 $357.77 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1210–2020 1391 75-80% 23 66.00–68.50 $67.17 $934 —
1292–1660 1452 75-80% 15 61.00–65.50 $63.89 $928 -8.52
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
760–1120 969 85-90% 5 46.00–52.00 $49.52 $480 +1.84
860–1795 1077 85-90% 17 53.50–58.00 $56.54 $609 -5.76
1120 1120 85-90% 5 60.50 $60.50 $678 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1140–1250 1206 80-85% 4 59.50–64.50 $62.93 $759 —
1225–1253 1250 80-85% 11 65.00–66.50 $65.13 $814 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1410–1800 1591 8 77.00–84.00 $80.97 $1,288 —
1510–1910 1708 5 86.00–92.00 $88.91 $1,519 —
1775–2400 2070 7 95.00–105.00 $97.89 $2,026 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
920–1375 1008 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 32 48.75–61.00 $54.35 $548

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1025–1451 1177 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 14 950.00–1,000.00 $977.99
995–1388 1224 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 15 1,075.00–1,175.00 $1,118.81

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
975–1050 1046 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 17 985.00–1,060.00 $989.11 —
1100 1100 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 10 1,075.00 $1,075.00 —
1000–1250 1143 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 7 1,275.00–1,325.00 $1,293.75 —

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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.