Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, May 25, 2021

853 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 4-weight M&L 1 steers $191.79/cwt +18.32 vs last sale · ≈ $892/hd at 465 lb · 91 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $178.80/cwt +25.80 vs last sale · ≈ $992/hd at 555 lb · 70 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $133.11/cwt ≈ $813/hd at 611 lb · 64 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 853 658 0
Feeder cattle 665 279 0
Slaughter cattle 88 254 0
Replacement cattle 100 125 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: Feeder steers and heifers too lightly tested last week for a comparison although a higher under tone noted. Slaughter cows and bulls mostly 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
455–484 465 91 186.00–194.00 $191.79 $892 +18.32
503–538 529 53 180.00–189.00 $186.08 $984 —
553–562 555 70 173.00–181.00 $178.80 $992 +25.80
669 669 9 150.00 $150.00 $1,004 —
726 726 7 138.00 $138.00 $1,002 -2.00
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
573 573 14 166.50 $166.50 $954 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
436 436 12 149.00 $149.00 $650 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
404–428 415 14 151.00–156.00 $154.03 $639 —
504–543 521 54 144.00–150.00 $146.91 $765 —
582 582 20 142.50 $142.50 $829 +7.29
600–639 611 64 131.50–138.00 $133.11 $813 —
757–769 764 22 128.00–129.00 $128.45 $981 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
454 454 10 143.50 $143.50 $651 —
538 538 30 137.00 $137.00 $737 ±0.00

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1030–1185 1093 80-85% 9 62.50–63.00 $62.72 $686 —
1126–1233 1156 80-85% 24 64.75–66.00 $65.13 $753 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1350–1435 1383 75-80% 3 65.50–70.00 $67.22 $930 +3.61
1505–1655 1596 75-80% 3 62.00–64.00 $63.01 $1,006 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
965–1085 1046 85-90% 5 60.00–62.00 $61.18 $640 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1615–1970 1842 7 79.00–86.50 $84.31 $1,553 —
1875 1875 1 87.00 $87.00 $1,631 +3.85

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
1036–1413 1235 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 58 60.50–66.75 $64.87 $801

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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.