Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, January 17, 2023

4,739 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $171.05/cwt -2.83 vs last sale · ≈ $1,062/hd at 621 lb · 266 head
light 7-weight M&L 1 steers $177.49/cwt -5.30 vs last sale · ≈ $1,279/hd at 721 lb · 252 head
heavy 7-weight M&L 1 steers $175.13/cwt -2.89 vs last sale · ≈ $1,340/hd at 765 lb · 246 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 4,739 7,273 5,427
Feeder cattle 4,361 6,847 5,165
Slaughter cattle 378 426 262

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: Steers uneven, under 550 lb steady to 2.00 higher, 550 to 700 lbs 3.00 to 5.00 lower, over 700 lbs steady to 2.00 higher. Heifers uneven 300 to 400 lbs 5.00 lower, 400 to 600 lbs steady to 3.00 higher, over 600 lbs steady to 3.00 lower. Slaughter cows steady to 2.00 higher. 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
302–340 326 13 265.00–276.00 $270.41 $882 -3.59
352–385 374 21 262.00–273.00 $265.88 $994 +12.70
408 fancy 408 6 260.00 $260.00 $1,061 +5.80
410–426 417 54 242.00–254.00 $248.98 $1,038 +5.67
453 value added 453 15 256.00 $256.00 $1,160 —
460 fancy 460 7 244.00 $244.00 $1,122 —
468–487 478 30 230.00–239.00 $232.40 $1,111 +1.92
503 value added 503 49 226.00 $226.00 $1,137 —
518–546 530 153 215.50–216.00 $215.73 $1,143 -6.95
559–597 581 206 200.00–209.00 $205.86 $1,196 -3.69
600–640 619 91 193.00–201.00 $197.55 $1,223 -4.23
653–695 672 194 180.00–189.00 $180.98 $1,216 -10.30
700–732 716 213 174.50–179.60 $176.75 $1,266 -6.04
746 fancy 746 39 181.50 $181.50 $1,354 —
750–774 765 246 171.00–178.00 $175.13 $1,340 -0.23
806–840 829 72 170.00–173.00 $170.97 $1,417 +1.68
877–884 880 75 165.00–167.50 $166.20 $1,463 -1.13
965 965 7 163.00 $163.00 $1,573 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
397 397 16 236.50 $236.50 $939 —
479 479 64 210.00 $210.00 $1,006 —
506 506 6 207.00 $207.00 $1,047 —
595 595 88 197.00 $197.00 $1,172 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
624–639 637 60 187.00–189.00 $187.33 $1,193 —
655 655 32 175.00 $175.00 $1,146 —
Small 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
337 337 5 217.50 $217.50 $733 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
300–313 307 6 200.00–203.00 $201.53 $619 -46.47
376–394 392 35 194.00–200.50 $198.55 $778 -20.45
400–426 410 77 190.00–198.00 $194.48 $797 +5.80
452–489 478 115 187.00–194.50 $192.34 $919 +4.04
500–543 513 172 183.00–189.50 $185.12 $950 -2.06
513 fancy 513 13 195.00 $195.00 $1,000 —
550 fancy 550 8 185.00 $185.00 $1,018 —
550–597 572 129 170.00–179.00 $174.60 $999 -4.95
586 586 43 186.00 $186.00 $1,090 +6.45
600–644 621 266 168.00–177.00 $171.05 $1,062 -2.83
651–695 672 130 165.50–169.00 $167.24 $1,124 -4.20
702–737 714 169 163.00–171.00 $167.25 $1,194 +0.28
754–796 781 37 160.00–166.50 $162.20 $1,267 -4.43
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
411 411 36 179.00 $179.00 $736 —
505–541 514 110 174.00–179.00 $175.30 $901 -2.70
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
511 511 14 176.00 $176.00 $899 —

↑ Back to top

Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
286 unweaned 286 10 240.00 $240.00 $686 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
845–1325 1017 85-90% 14 51.00–61.00 $57.32 $583 —
920–1115 1069 85-90% 21 61.00–65.00 $63.62 $680 -4.31
1013–1287 1079 85-90% 17 62.00–65.00 $63.26 $683 -0.15
1080–1380 1220 85-90% 25 66.00–71.00 $68.00 $830 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1083–1365 1151 80-85% 36 63.00–69.00 $65.91 $759 —
1012–1425 1296 80-85% 41 70.00–76.00 $72.39 $938 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1230–1850 1377 75-80% 30 67.00–71.00 $69.83 $962 —
1375–1735 1468 75-80% 37 72.00–79.00 $75.74 $1,112 —

↑ Back to top

Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1460–1592 1556 4 86.00–89.00 $87.47 $1,361 —
1795 1795 1 84.00 $84.00 $1,508 —
1870–2090 1979 6 92.00–95.00 $93.67 $1,854 —
1885–2350 2095 3 100.00–103.50 $101.96 $2,136 —

↑ Back to top

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.