Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, April 23, 2024

457 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

heavy 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $230.09/cwt -14.58 vs last sale · ≈ $1,535/hd at 667 lb · 20 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 steers $302.17/cwt -1.57 vs last sale · ≈ $1,698/hd at 562 lb · 17 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $266.61/cwt -12.35 vs last sale · ≈ $1,768/hd at 663 lb · 15 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 457 1,762 1,050
Feeder cattle 217 933 567
Slaughter cattle 135 236 218
Replacement cattle 105 593 265

Market comments — USDA reporter

Trade activity and demand was moderate. Feeder steers sold mostly 5.00 to 15.00 higher across all weight classes. Feeder heifers sold unevenly steady across all weight classes on a light test. Slaughter cows sold 1.00 to 2.00 higher across all weight classes and slaughter bulls sold 4.00 lower. The next feeder calf and slaughter cow sale will be next Tuesday April 30, 2024.

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
418 418 2 358.00 $358.00 $1,496 -4.90
496 496 4 327.50 $327.50 $1,624 ±0.00
500 500 4 322.50 $322.50 $1,612 —
560–562 562 17 301.00–306.00 $302.17 $1,698 +4.30
613 613 4 290.00 $290.00 $1,778 +9.51
660–665 663 15 265.00–268.00 $266.61 $1,768 -12.35
764 764 7 240.00 $240.00 $1,834 -5.00
862 862 11 214.00 $214.00 $1,845 +3.17
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
378 378 3 357.50 $357.50 $1,351 —
441 441 6 351.00 $351.00 $1,548 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
633 633 2 262.50 $262.50 $1,662 +2.50

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
453 453 4 310.00 $310.00 $1,404 +6.88
573 573 7 257.00 $257.00 $1,473 -14.43
655–688 667 20 225.00–233.50 $230.09 $1,535 -5.91
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
494 494 5 282.00 $282.00 $1,393 +1.00
568–592 582 5 252.00–259.00 $254.73 $1,483 —
660 660 3 227.50 $227.50 $1,502 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
360 360 3 322.50 $322.50 $1,161 —
633 633 4 261.00 $261.00 $1,652 ±0.00
798 798 6 213.00 $213.00 $1,700 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
990 990 85-90% 1 99.00 $99.00 $980 —
810–1290 1118 85-90% 41 102.00–130.00 $121.39 $1,357 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1300–1499 1420 80-85% 26 109.00–132.00 $125.04 $1,776 +34.04
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1701–1940 1716 65-75% 16 121.00–125.00 $121.28 $2,081 +7.28
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1500–1665 1558 75-80% 5 120.00–132.00 $126.55 $1,972 +1.89

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1045–2095 1560 35 104.00–156.00 $138.34 $2,158 —

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Stock Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
775–810 thin fleshed 793 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 200.00–205.00 $202.44 $1,605
775–980 877 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 17 175.00–190.00 $183.77 $1,612
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
775–1074 984 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 8 148.00–160.00 $150.69 $1,483
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hd
825–1200 1013 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 2 131.00–139.00 $135.74 $1,375

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1015 1015 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)2nd Stage (4-6 mo) 1 1,425.00 $1,425.00
1070 1070 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)1st Stage (1-3 mo) 1 1,325.00 $1,325.00
1174–1215 1186 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 7 1,425.00–1,560.00 $1,464.52
1284 1284 Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 11 1,625.00 $1,625.00
1289 1289 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 4 1,575.00 $1,575.00
Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1020 1020 Young (2-4 yrs)2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo) 6 2,000.00 $2,000.00
957–1188 1049 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 5 2,050.00–2,150.00 $2,104.72
1370–1490 1430 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 1,725.00–1,875.00 $1,803.15
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1575 1575 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 875.00 $875.00

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
970 970 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,050.00 $2,050.00 +115.99
1065 1065 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 2,600.00 $2,600.00 —
1233 1233 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 2 1,825.00 $1,825.00 -675.00
1340 1340 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 4 2,150.00 $2,150.00 +97.74
1460 1460 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 1 2,000.00 $2,000.00 -417.45
1567 1567 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 5 2,350.00 $2,350.00 -50.00
1625 1625 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,250.00 $2,250.00 -512.85
1725 1725 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,775.00 $2,775.00 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1120–1240 1179 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 5 1,625.00–1,875.00 $1,763.93 -90.79
1040–1360 1195 Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)Open 4 1,650.00–1,875.00 $1,773.35 -81.37
1260 1260 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 1,725.00 $1,725.00 -225.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
780 780 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)Open 1 875.00 $875.00 —

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Heifer Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
760 760 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 2,000.00 $2,000.00 —

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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.