Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, October 11, 2022

1,961 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $166.75/cwt -2.12 vs last sale · ≈ $1,057/hd at 634 lb · 176 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $174.06/cwt +3.86 vs last sale · ≈ $987/hd at 567 lb · 147 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $159.79/cwt -8.98 vs last sale · ≈ $912/hd at 571 lb · 129 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,961 1,772 2,067
Feeder cattle 1,599 1,539 1,967
Slaughter cattle 362 233 100

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: Steer calve's under 600 lbs 3.00 to 5.00 instances 8.00 to 10.00 higher, over 600 lbs steady to 2.00 higher. Heifer calve's under 400 lbs steady, 400 to 600 lbs 2.00 to 4.00 higher, 600 to 650 lbs 3.00 to 5.00 lower, 650 to 700 lbs steady. Yearling feeder steer's mostly steady. Yearling feeder heifer's scarce. Slaughter cows steady to 5.00 lower decline on breaker's and boner's. Slaughter 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
407 fancy 407 11 209.00 $209.00 $851 +18.00
452–456 fancy 455 17 203.00 $203.00 $924 —
451–466 457 24 194.00–197.00 $195.20 $892 +14.97
503–548 533 37 180.00–184.50 $183.90 $980 +5.02
540 fancy 540 24 189.50 $189.50 $1,023 —
555 fancy 555 37 186.00 $186.00 $1,032 —
550–598 571 110 168.00–175.00 $170.05 $971 -0.15
632 fancy 632 16 174.00 $174.00 $1,100 —
612–648 unweaned 634 160 161.00–169.50 $166.02 $1,053 -0.96
651–695 unweaned 661 50 163.00–166.00 $164.60 $1,088 -1.29
691 fancy 691 17 170.50 $170.50 $1,178 —
707–740 unweaned 720 89 162.50–165.00 $164.86 $1,187 -0.14
823–846 826 30 167.50–170.50 $170.09 $1,405 -1.91
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
503–533 514 11 170.50–171.00 $170.81 $878 -0.61
550–580 565 28 161.00–165.50 $163.00 $921 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
515–518 517 7 175.00–177.00 $175.85 $909 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
386–395 391 11 170.50–173.00 $171.62 $671 -2.83
403 fancy 403 8 179.00 $179.00 $721 —
405–448 430 27 168.00–175.00 $170.72 $734 +3.51
490–494 492 26 160.00–168.50 $163.61 $805 +2.52
503–544 530 108 156.00–165.00 $159.24 $844 -1.98
550–592 571 129 155.00–164.50 $159.79 $912 —
607 fancy 607 6 166.00 $166.00 $1,008 -8.75
601–622 unweaned 609 41 158.00–161.00 $159.12 $969 —
661 fancy 661 10 165.00 $165.00 $1,091 —
651–693 unweaned 679 77 160.00–163.00 $161.98 $1,100 -2.02
732 unweaned 732 9 159.00 $159.00 $1,164 —
820 820 7 158.00 $158.00 $1,296 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
476–497 489 23 155.00–157.00 $155.75 $762 +2.89
603–636 unweaned 620 47 152.00–155.00 $153.69 $953 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
457 457 7 181.00 $181.00 $827 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1010–1325 1147 85-90% 29 57.00–64.50 $59.62 $684 —
960–1345 1153 85-90% 2 70.00–72.00 $70.83 $817 —
1125–1208 1163 85-90% 22 54.50–56.00 $55.29 $643 —
1006–1355 1182 85-90% 42 51.00–57.00 $54.45 $644 —
1283 1283 85-90% 10 61.50 $61.50 $789 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1237–1294 1268 80-85% 32 57.00–64.00 $61.53 $780 -20.11
1200–1565 1315 80-85% 38 60.00–68.00 $65.95 $867 -7.59
1210–1380 1329 80-85% 10 70.00–72.00 $71.11 $945 -2.43
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1411–1610 1471 75-80% 16 64.00–69.50 $68.07 $1,001 —
1385–1720 1499 75-80% 50 70.00–75.50 $72.90 $1,093 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1275–2380 1860 7 85.00–89.00 $86.97 $1,618 —
1595–2265 1912 8 91.00–93.00 $92.56 $1,770 —
2005 2005 1 95.00 $95.00 $1,905 —

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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.