Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, May 24, 2022

894 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $167.04/cwt ≈ $872/hd at 522 lb · 59 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 steers $184.00/cwt ≈ $992/hd at 539 lb · 31 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $180.50/cwt ≈ $1,014/hd at 562 lb · 26 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 894 1,311 853
Feeder cattle 486 681 665
Slaughter cattle 268 294 88
Replacement cattle 140 336 100

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: Feeder steer's and heifer's lightly tested. Slaughter cow's 1.00 to 3.00 higher full advance on breaker's. Slaughter bulls steady. Today's sale consisted mostly of slaughter cow's and cow/calf pairs. 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
379 379 7 200.00 $200.00 $758 —
473 473 14 181.00 $181.00 $856 —
539 539 31 184.00 $184.00 $992 —
561 thin fleshed 561 13 186.00 $186.00 $1,043 —
563 563 13 175.00 $175.00 $985 —
665–692 680 21 158.00–161.00 $159.74 $1,086 —
775 775 14 150.50 $150.50 $1,166 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
451 451 18 166.00 $166.00 $749 —
519–537 522 59 163.00–168.00 $167.04 $872 —
651–652 652 15 151.00 $151.00 $985 —
722 722 11 146.50 $146.50 $1,058 -9.50
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
160–175 171 6 225.00–350.00 $310.37 —
323 323 6 560.00 $560.00 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
125–135 130 3 225.00 $225.00 —
160–175 168 2 275.00–310.00 $291.72 —
200–210 202 8 425.00–460.00 $454.26 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
191–1205 754 85-90% 29 62.00–66.00 $64.17 $484 —
985–1325 1111 85-90% 45 66.75–72.00 $68.20 $758 +8.41
1060–1370 1141 85-90% 7 55.50–61.50 $60.39 $689 -5.53
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1335–1675 1425 75-80% 43 73.00–78.00 $76.42 $1,089 -0.54
1390–1745 1578 75-80% 31 80.00–84.00 $82.41 $1,300 —
1650 1650 75-80% 1 91.00 $91.00 $1,502 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1120–1355 1257 80-85% 44 74.00–77.00 $75.09 $944 —
1110–1450 1258 80-85% 27 68.00–73.25 $70.54 $887 —
1425 1425 80-85% 1 80.50 $80.50 $1,147 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1440–1890 1720 5 88.00–92.00 $90.63 $1,559 -6.68
1562–2160 1840 10 95.00–102.50 $97.47 $1,793 —
2520 2520 1 115.50 $115.50 $2,911 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1245–1285 1261 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 17 1,125.00–1,275.00 $1,187.92
1380 1380 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 7 1,050.00 $1,050.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1100 1100 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 17 1,050.00 $1,050.00 —
1150 1150 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 19 1,260.00–1,325.00 $1,307.89 —
1200 1200 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 3 1,500.00 $1,500.00 +220.05
1100–1300 1214 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 36 1,300.00–1,325.00 $1,315.29 +35.34
1150–1450 1238 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 17 1,425.00–1,450.00 $1,433.61 +106.31
1225–1285 1261 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 5 1,610.00–1,635.00 $1,619.71 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
950 950 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 6 1,160.00 $1,160.00 —
1250 1250 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 5 1,175.00 $1,175.00 —

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Heifer Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
720 720 (<2 yrs)Open 14 1,310.00 $1,310.00 —

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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.