Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 25, 2023

1,050 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 steers $233.20/cwt +17.64 vs last sale · ≈ $1,463/hd at 627 lb · 30 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $253.11/cwt ≈ $1,486/hd at 587 lb · 28 head
light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $215.08/cwt +3.75 vs last sale · ≈ $1,129/hd at 525 lb · 25 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,050 917 631
Feeder cattle 567 767 499
Slaughter cattle 218 150 132
Replacement cattle 265 — 0

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Tuesday: Today's sale consisted mostly of replacement stock cows and pairs. Feeder steers and heifers in a limited supply mostly steady except for 600 to 650 lb steers 8.00 to 10.00 higher. Slaughter cows 1.00 to 2.00 lower. Slaughter bulls steady.

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
350 350 10 260.00 $260.00 $910 —
445 445 4 253.00 $253.00 $1,126 -19.00
580 580 11 244.00 $244.00 $1,415 —
592 thin fleshed 592 17 259.00 $259.00 $1,533 —
602 602 12 226.00 $226.00 $1,361 +10.44
644 fancy 644 18 238.00 $238.00 $1,533 —
663–680 668 19 209.00–212.00 $211.04 $1,410 +0.33
723 723 16 206.00 $206.00 $1,489 +9.93
770–778 774 25 196.00–200.00 $198.09 $1,533 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
512 512 12 235.00 $235.00 $1,203 —
673–695 681 8 196.00–197.00 $196.38 $1,337 —
722 722 7 194.00 $194.00 $1,401 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
535 535 21 221.00 $221.00 $1,182 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
455 455 6 231.00 $231.00 $1,051 —
535 535 5 226.00 $226.00 $1,209 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
340 340 13 272.00 $272.00 $925 —
507–537 525 25 209.00–220.00 $215.08 $1,129 +3.75
590 590 15 208.00 $208.00 $1,227 +8.41
600–648 628 13 198.00–201.00 $199.11 $1,250 +1.11
691–693 692 17 196.00–202.00 $199.89 $1,383 +8.87
725 725 2 188.00 $188.00 $1,363 -1.12

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Slaughter Cows

Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1090–1385 1206 80-85% 16 83.00–89.00 $86.46 $1,043 +1.00
1182–1246 1221 80-85% 18 87.00–89.00 $88.25 $1,078 +2.79
1070–1575 1346 80-85% 23 91.00–96.00 $92.95 $1,251 -3.55
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
960–1115 1021 85-90% 4 67.00–74.00 $71.53 $730 +4.16
1030 1030 85-90% 2 88.00 $88.00 $906 +20.63
1020–1102 1041 85-90% 8 76.00–81.00 $77.32 $805 +9.95
980–1350 1097 85-90% 10 77.00–82.00 $80.04 $878 +2.21
1131 1131 85-90% 8 82.00 $82.00 $927 +1.40
1020–1290 1181 85-90% 8 83.00–87.00 $84.77 $1,001 —
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1345–1740 1433 75-80% 27 90.00–95.00 $92.61 $1,327 —
1305–1855 1475 75-80% 8 83.00–87.00 $85.49 $1,261 -8.90

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1345–1865 1619 4 98.00–103.00 $99.88 $1,617 —
1550–2240 1959 8 104.00–110.00 $107.03 $2,097 -2.03
1860–2170 2018 3 115.00–120.00 $117.41 $2,369 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
962–1172 1048 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 13 1,250.00–1,325.00 $1,288.38
1023–1122 1087 Aged (>8 yrs)1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo) 14 825.00–925.00 $891.38
1082–1386 1239 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 8 1,460.00–1,700.00 $1,543.53
1245–1580 1325 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 9 1,550.00–1,650.00 $1,597.36
1283–1531 1366 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 11 1,475.00–1,600.00 $1,530.29

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1080–1495 1332 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 20 1,625.00–1,800.00 $1,703.59 —
1250–1550 1356 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)Open 31 1,800.00–1,900.00 $1,858.96 —
1425 1425 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 6 2,300.00 $2,300.00 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1150 1150 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 8 1,800.00 $1,800.00 —

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Heifer Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
885–1250 1080 (<2 yrs)Open 43 2,300.00–2,500.00 $2,438.56 —
Medium 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
790 790 (<2 yrs)Open 11 2,225.00 $2,225.00 —

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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.