Cattle Market Pulse

Winter Livestock (Tuesday) Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Tuesday, February 24, 2026

1,511 head sold ·Official USDA report

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

light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $422.94/cwt +22.59 vs last sale · ≈ $2,617/hd at 619 lb · 158 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $416.03/cwt +19.97 vs last sale · ≈ $2,825/hd at 679 lb · 151 head
heavy 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $451.79/cwt +25.78 vs last sale · ≈ $2,548/hd at 564 lb · 116 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,511 1,581 1,402
Feeder cattle 1,389 793 1,151
Slaughter cattle 95 244 164
Replacement cattle 27 544 87

Market comments — USDA reporter

Trade activity and demand was good. Feeder steers under 600 sold 5.00 to 6.00 lower. Feeder steers over 600 sold 5.00 to 7.00 higher with instances of sharply higher. Feeder heifers sold mostly 7.00 to 8.00 higher with instances of sharply higher across all weight classes. Breaker slaughter cows of average dressing sold 4.00 higher. Boner cows of average dressing sold 1.00 higher and lean cows sold 1.00 higher. Slaughter bulls of average dressing sold 1.00 lower. The next feeder calf and slaughter cow sale will be next Tuesday March 3, 2026.

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
313 unweaned 313 4 632.50 $632.50 $1,980 -12.50
420–443 unweaned 436 7 557.50–570.00 $560.94 $2,446 -39.06
452 452 3 535.00 $535.00 $2,418 -5.00
477–493 unweaned 480 10 512.50–522.50 $520.45 $2,498 —
503–530 524 23 525.00–530.00 $528.96 $2,772 -5.39
562 fancy 562 15 492.50 $492.50 $2,768 —
565–596 587 73 465.00–488.00 $473.33 $2,778 +13.19
585–589 unweaned 587 10 442.00–457.00 $449.47 $2,638 +6.47
611–622 615 28 450.00 $450.00 $2,768 +17.50
609–627 unweaned 620 20 427.00–427.50 $427.20 $2,649 —
662–685 unweaned 674 6 387.50–397.00 $392.33 $2,644 +12.33
677 fancy 677 88 421.00 $421.00 $2,850 —
678–691 683 57 407.00–412.50 $410.84 $2,806 +11.57
714–734 730 56 388.00–400.00 $390.96 $2,854 -1.80
780 780 47 375.00 $375.00 $2,925 +5.00
830 830 46 362.50 $362.50 $3,009 -4.06
882 882 54 350.00 $350.00 $3,087 -4.19
900–926 905 60 333.00–347.00 $344.37 $3,117 —
1020 1020 12 323.00 $323.00 $3,295 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
433 unweaned 433 23 535.00 $535.00 $2,317 —
632–648 unweaned 638 5 415.00 $415.00 $2,648 —
690 unweaned 690 2 372.50 $372.50 $2,570 +22.50
770–788 780 15 360.00 $360.00 $2,808 —
873 873 2 320.00 $320.00 $2,794 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
550 unweaned 550 2 432.50 $432.50 $2,379 —
705–741 723 12 381.00–385.00 $382.95 $2,769 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
359 unweaned 359 11 515.00 $515.00 $1,849 —
405–430 fancy 420 25 502.50–507.50 $504.43 $2,119 -50.57
408–448 421 26 480.00–483.00 $481.90 $2,029 -12.00
418–441 unweaned 435 10 465.00–475.00 $471.79 $2,052 +6.79
485 485 12 487.00 $487.00 $2,362 +13.70
479–494 unweaned 489 18 447.50–455.00 $449.95 $2,200 —
507 unweaned 507 9 430.00 $430.00 $2,180 +7.50
526–530 528 68 442.50–452.50 $447.67 $2,364 -5.21
554–561 unweaned 557 25 430.00–437.00 $434.88 $2,422 —
558–580 566 91 452.50–459.00 $456.44 $2,583 +30.43
612 fancy 612 64 436.00 $436.00 $2,668 —
620 620 51 424.00 $424.00 $2,629 +23.65
601–644 unweaned 627 43 395.00–406.00 $402.26 $2,522 —
653–687 678 46 387.00–393.00 $391.49 $2,654 -4.24
708 708 16 375.00 $375.00 $2,655 +24.00
784 784 4 340.00 $340.00 $2,666 -9.50
829–848 832 72 339.00–347.25 $345.97 $2,878 +13.47
928 928 2 307.50 $307.50 $2,854 —
Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
358 unweaned 358 3 515.00 $515.00 $1,844 —
467 467 7 470.00 $470.00 $2,195 —
595 unweaned 595 4 400.00 $400.00 $2,380 —
621 unweaned 621 8 395.00 $395.00 $2,453 —
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
503 unweaned 503 2 402.50 $402.50 $2,025 —
598 unweaned 598 2 407.50 $407.50 $2,437 —

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Slaughter Cows

Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
910–1525 1158 85-90% 9 140.00–159.00 $151.43 $1,754 -12.94
1165–1290 1277 85-90% 24 161.00–169.00 $165.37 $2,112 —
1293 1293 85-90% 3 170.00 $170.00 $2,198 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1305–1348 1331 80-85% 5 172.00–177.50 $174.16 $2,318 —
1300–1445 1337 80-85% 20 160.00–169.00 $164.49 $2,199 —
1355–1410 1383 80-85% 2 156.00–159.00 $157.53 $2,179 -0.47
N/N/A ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1769 1769 65-75% 6 169.00 $169.00 $2,990 —
1805 1805 65-75% 1 150.00 $150.00 $2,708 -13.00
Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1690 1690 75-80% 1 167.00 $167.00 $2,822 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1215–1525 1345 4 159.00–174.00 $170.24 $2,290 —
1410–1980 1743 4 178.00–185.00 $182.03 $3,173 —
1095–2110 1825 10 195.00–209.00 $203.30 $3,710 —

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Bred Cows

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $
1015–1320 1168 Young (2-4 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 2 3,375.00–3,625.00 $3,516.33
1280 1280 Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 1 3,250.00 $3,250.00
1305–1625 1345 Aged (>8 yrs)3rd Stage (7-9 mo) 8 2,650.00–2,975.00 $2,925.92

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Cow-Calf Pairs

Medium and Large 1 ($/head)
Weight (lb) Avg wt AgeStage Head Price range Avg $ Δ last sale
1095 1095 Young (2-4 yrs)Open 1 3,575.00 $3,575.00 —
1120 1120 Aged (>8 yrs)Open 1 2,900.00 $2,900.00 —

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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.