Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 27, 2021

728 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 7-weight M&L 1 heifers $147.00/cwt +24.71 vs last sale · ≈ $1,105/hd at 752 lb · 44 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $159.14/cwt -3.96 vs last sale · ≈ $813/hd at 511 lb · 38 head
heavy 4-weight M&L 1 heifers $155.09/cwt +2.09 vs last sale · ≈ $732/hd at 472 lb · 29 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 728 903 0
Feeder cattle 552 617 0
Slaughter cattle 95 190 0
Replacement cattle 81 96 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: Feeder steers in a light run with quality and condition steady. Feeder heifers steady to 2.00 lower decline on 500 to 600 lbs. Yearling feeder steers over 700 lbs scarce. Yearling feeder heifers over 700 lbs steady. Slaughter cows and bulls steady. Trade and demand moderate to good.

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
409–432 428 21 175.00 $175.00 $749 —
488–496 492 13 162.00–166.00 $163.83 $806 —
504 fancy 504 15 166.00 $166.00 $837 —
501–548 515 23 152.00–156.00 $154.66 $796 -8.44
550–596 589 19 150.00–152.00 $150.30 $885 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
670 670 9 135.00 $135.00 $904 -6.00

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
428–430 429 22 160.00–168.00 $163.26 $700 —
464–490 472 29 151.00–157.00 $155.09 $732 +2.09
527 527 18 149.00 $149.00 $785 -2.62
554 554 4 145.00 $145.00 $803 +5.00
601 601 4 137.00 $137.00 $823 —
677 677 10 127.00 $127.00 $860 -7.49
705–732 724 20 123.00–125.00 $123.52 $894 -0.48
752 752 44 147.00 $147.00 $1,105 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
469–488 476 8 140.00–142.00 $140.77 $670 —
583 583 15 133.00–137.00 $135.13 $788 +1.82

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Feeder Bulls

Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
534 534 6 141.00 $141.00 $753 —
713 713 13 125.00 $125.00 $891 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1030–1370 1176 80-85% 16 60.00–65.00 $63.66 $749 —
1060–1445 1200 80-85% 17 66.00–68.50 $66.91 $803 +3.98
1265–1275 1270 80-85% 2 69.00–70.00 $69.50 $883 +4.37
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1233–1605 1415 75-80% 19 66.00–68.00 $66.81 $945 —
1280–1690 1440 75-80% 8 64.00–65.50 $64.96 $935 —
1490 1490 75-80% 1 70.00 $70.00 $1,043 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
840–965 882 85-90% 3 40.00–43.00 $41.68 $368 —
910–1065 1000 85-90% 3 52.00–55.00 $53.74 $537 —
895–1225 1048 85-90% 9 58.00–61.50 $60.22 $631 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1442–2220 1723 8 81.00–85.00 $82.92 $1,429 -5.99
1475–1995 1776 4 86.00–92.00 $89.21 $1,584 —
2020–2125 2084 4 95.00–100.00 $97.27 $2,027 -0.62

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1030–1510 1236 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 63 61.00–67.50 $66.44 $821

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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.