Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 11, 2023

1,693 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $224.19/cwt +0.93 vs last sale · ≈ $1,181/hd at 527 lb · 100 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $247.00/cwt +5.18 vs last sale · ≈ $1,403/hd at 568 lb · 86 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1-2 steers $213.61/cwt ≈ $1,260/hd at 590 lb · 23 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,693 3,486 1,760
Feeder cattle 597 3,387 1,432
Slaughter cattle 240 99 206
Replacement cattle 856 — 122

Market comments — USDA reporter

Today's sale consisted mostly of bred cows and cow calf pairs. Feeder steers and heifers with quality and condition mostly steady in a light test. Slaughter cows and bulls mostly steady. 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
568 568 86 247.00 $247.00 $1,403 +5.18
674 674 22 212.00 $212.00 $1,429 +10.73
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
447 447 4 247.50 $247.50 $1,106 —
455 455 16 237.50 $237.50 $1,081 -25.74
513 513 15 238.00 $238.00 $1,221 -4.92
589–591 590 23 211.00–217.00 $213.61 $1,260 —
634 634 14 204.00 $204.00 $1,293 +1.15

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
457 457 19 223.00 $223.00 $1,019 -7.21
505–533 527 100 224.00–225.00 $224.19 $1,181 +2.27
715 fancy 715 10 192.00 $192.00 $1,373 +1.00
746 746 7 177.50 $177.50 $1,324 -22.50
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
489 489 10 213.00 $213.00 $1,042 -4.78
505 505 8 213.00 $213.00 $1,076 ±0.00
564 564 5 208.00 $208.00 $1,173 +7.76
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
511 511 15 209.00 $209.00 $1,068 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
810–1075 978 85-90% 14 73.00–79.00 $75.70 $740 +3.79
905–1290 1041 85-90% 13 80.00–84.00 $80.84 $842 —
961–1193 1058 85-90% 16 70.00–78.00 $76.19 $806 —
885–1405 1102 85-90% 14 86.00–91.00 $88.42 $974 +6.79
920–1193 1125 85-90% 6 86.00–86.50 $86.35 $971 +4.72
1025–1250 1197 85-90% 17 82.00–88.00 $84.73 $1,014 -7.05
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1042–1115 1066 80-85% 3 87.00–91.00 $88.39 $942 —
1042–1310 1187 80-85% 25 86.00–94.00 $89.52 $1,063 -2.10
1075–1365 1247 80-85% 3 96.00–100.00 $97.33 $1,214 —
1210–1375 1311 80-85% 17 94.00–98.00 $96.10 $1,260 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1368–1670 1443 75-80% 23 95.00–101.00 $96.90 $1,398 —
1355–1460 1444 75-80% 11 93.00–96.00 $94.78 $1,369 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1457–1795 1527 16 99.00–105.00 $102.15 $1,560 —
1685–1855 1768 3 103.00–104.00 $103.68 $1,833 —
1665–2185 1928 5 104.00–112.00 $106.48 $2,053 —
1895–2015 1945 3 115.00–119.00 $116.30 $2,262 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1107–1224 1154 Aged (>8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 54 1,025.00–1,175.00 $1,092.39
1157–1368 1232 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 56 1,125.00–1,350.00 $1,196.39
1168–1445 1298 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 23 1,275.00–1,450.00 $1,362.32
1024–1496 1365 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 77 1,600.00–1,800.00 $1,669.19
1406 1406 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 19 1,400.00 $1,400.00
1385–1455 1420 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 8 1,400.00 $1,400.00
1396–1532 1485 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 23 1,450.00–1,575.00 $1,534.12

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1050–1205 1103 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 18 1,325.00–1,475.00 $1,434.08 —
1150–1225 1189 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 29 2,550.00–2,700.00 $2,629.95 —
1150–1237 1199 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 34 1,225.00 $1,225.00 —
1125–1375 1241 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 34 2,250.00–2,400.00 $2,302.13 —
1250 1250 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 4 1,550.00 $1,550.00 —
1240–1362 1336 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 25 1,460.00–1,550.00 $1,476.50 —

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Heifer Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
830–980 900 (<2 yrs)Open 15 2,125.00 $2,125.00 —

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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.