Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, December 20, 2022

1,486 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $161.48/cwt -7.64 vs last sale · ≈ $1,078/hd at 668 lb · 109 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $169.01/cwt -2.25 vs last sale · ≈ $958/hd at 567 lb · 65 head
light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $191.11/cwt -4.73 vs last sale · ≈ $1,190/hd at 623 lb · 56 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,486 6,430 1,566
Feeder cattle 1,277 5,918 1,220
Slaughter cattle 209 512 346

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: All weights of feeder steers and heifers in a light test with quality and condition mostly steady. Slaughter cows steady to 1.00 lower. Slaughter bulls steady. Demand moderate.

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
393 393 3 226.00 $226.00 $888 -23.00
418–445 426 11 209.00–218.00 $211.69 $902 -29.74
443 fancy 443 12 226.00 $226.00 $1,001 —
470 fancy 470 10 223.00 $223.00 $1,048 —
485–486 485 23 205.00–211.00 $206.83 $1,003 -27.17
515 fancy 515 9 213.50 $213.50 $1,100 —
536 536 15 204.00 $204.00 $1,093 -9.62
566–570 569 37 200.50–203.00 $201.17 $1,145 -5.35
600–633 612 32 190.00–196.00 $194.20 $1,189 +2.62
637 unweaned 637 24 187.00 $187.00 $1,191 —
655–667 660 33 181.00–186.00 $184.01 $1,214 +1.65
707–746 727 26 173.50–177.00 $175.20 $1,274 -2.48
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
665–675 667 29 163.00–171.00 $167.86 $1,120 —
724 724 20 168.50 $168.50 $1,220 —
819 819 23 167.50 $167.50 $1,372 —
881–888 883 17 162.00–163.50 $162.97 $1,439 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
538 538 9 186.00 $186.00 $1,001 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
456–466 461 39 173.00–180.00 $177.86 $820 -15.30
531 531 27 183.00 $183.00 $972 +1.66
551–565 553 31 170.00–175.00 $174.18 $963 -1.30
579–580 unweaned 580 34 163.00–167.00 $164.29 $953 -2.03
606 606 14 168.00 $168.00 $1,018 -23.00
622–640 unweaned 627 36 160.00–164.00 $163.33 $1,024 +0.03
651–691 663 85 158.00–165.00 $162.75 $1,079 -8.99
674–694 unweaned 685 24 157.00 $157.00 $1,075 -8.45
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
525 525 55 163.00 $163.00 $856 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
531 531 20 171.00 $171.00 $908 —
734 734 15 162.00 $162.00 $1,189 —
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
416 416 16 161.00 $161.00 $670 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
575 575 13 166.00 $166.00 $954 —

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1229–1380 1258 80-85% 10 66.00–69.50 $68.29 $859 +1.46
1180–1312 1263 80-85% 9 63.00–65.00 $63.99 $808 -2.84
1135–1436 1268 80-85% 24 66.50–71.50 $69.41 $880 +2.58
1337 1337 80-85% 4 65.50 $65.50 $876 -1.65
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1052 1052 85-90% 12 62.50 $62.50 $658 +3.50
950–1213 1121 85-90% 16 61.00–65.00 $63.81 $715 +8.25
1158 1158 85-90% 9 67.50 $67.50 $782 +1.50
1050–1280 1168 85-90% 5 65.00–67.00 $65.57 $766 +1.50
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1396–1780 1506 75-80% 13 69.00–74.00 $70.42 $1,061 -0.97
1250–1750 1537 75-80% 11 67.00–69.00 $68.02 $1,045 -3.37

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1580–1675 1628 2 85.00–89.00 $87.06 $1,417 —
1595–1970 1841 10 91.00–97.00 $93.60 $1,723 —
1990–2115 2033 3 100.00–103.00 $100.98 $2,053 +13.91
2075–2235 2155 2 87.00–88.00 $87.48 $1,885 —
2277 2277 2 106.00 $106.00 $2,414 —

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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.