Name: Billings Livestock Commission livestock auction prices — 2024-10-31
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2024-10-31

Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last sale: Feeder steer calves under 400 lbs sold generally steady, steer calves 400-499 lbs sold 5.00 to 12.00 higher, steer calves over 500 lbs sold generally steady. Heifer calves under 450 lbs sold mostly 5.00-10.00 higher, heifer calves 450-499 lbs sold fully steady, 500-599 lbs heifers sold generally steady to 5.00 lower; Heifer calves over 600 lbs were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however lower undertones were noticed. Yearling steers were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however steady undertones were noticed. Yearling heifers sold steady to 3.00 higher in a narrow comparison. Demand was mostly good on both yearling and calves. Offerings were moderate to heavy. Most yearlings sold in load lots today. Demand was good as a result. Many small packages of calves continue to be seen. No load lots of calves sold this week. Quality today was mostly average to attractive for calves and yearlings. Quality was more attractive this week compared to last week. Large packages of calves sold with the best demand while small packages sold with a discount. Market activity was mostly active this sale. Todays buyer pool was larger than last week. Bidding was active both ringside as well as over the internet. Weigh up cows sold on light demand and offerings. Most cows were pushing heavy amounts of fill today. Slaughter cows sold lower as all cows were extremely full. Feeding cows sold mostly with the best demand. Feeding cows sold mostly steady on like quality offerings. Cow and bull quality was plain. Many thin cows were seen this week. Slaughter bulls were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however steady undertones were noticed. Quality was mostly plain to average today. Buyers were more reserved as they bid on young cows as they accounted for excess fill.

Weight class

Heifers · summary 500–600 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

500–600 lb heifers averaged $268.92/cwt on 380 head. That ranks 1 of 21 comparable sales and sits −164.95 against this barn's trailing median of $433.86.

Average price

$268.92

380 head · 550 lb average

Value per head Derived

$1,479

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

$112

per head · Medium and Large 1 over Medium 1-2

$18.06/cwt at this weight

vs the market

−3.36

vs MT average

+8.46 vs national

What quality paid 500–600 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	550	272.06	1,496	313
Medium and Large 1-2	556	254.43	1,415	34
Medium 1-2	545	254.00	1,384	33

One grade step is worth $18.06/cwt here — about $112 a head. Across this sale the premium is widest at 400–500 lb. USDA reports each grade on its own line and never publishes the spread.

This barn's trailing prices 500–600 lb

21 sales

Heifers 500–600 lb: high $469.35, low $332.50, median $433.86 across 21 sales. Sales under 10 head in this class are excluded, so a thin day cannot swing the median or the ranking.

How it compared 500–600 lb

Same class and week · spot auction only

This sale380 hd

268.92

—

MT average5 barns · 1,135 hd

272.28

−3.36

National average194 barns · 26,693 hd

260.46

+8.46

This barn, trailing median21 sales

433.86

−164.95

A barn can sit above the state average at one weight and below it at another — check the class you actually sell.

Slaughter cattle

By class and quality grade · $/cwt

Cull cows and bulls are graded, not weight-classed — grade is what moves the money here.

Class	Grade	Dressing	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Bulls	—	Low	1,806	132.82	2,399	6thin
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Low	1,730	114.00	1,972	1thin
Cows	Boner 80-85%	Average	1,384	109.84	1,521	50
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Very Low	1,131	103.78	1,174	110

Replacement cattle Per head

By class, stage and age

Bred stock and pairs are reported per head, not per hundredweight — these prices are never mixed with the $/cwt figures above.

Class	Stage	Age	Avg wt	$/head	Head
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,172	$2,350	4thin
Bred Cows	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,042	$1,900	5
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1,128	$1,800	3thin

Every lot, as filed

111 lots · USDA AMS · Billings Livestock Commission Cattle Auction - Billings, MT (Thu)

Nothing removed and nothing rounded — the same lots as the USDA report, with per-head values added.

Class	Grade / description	Weight	Avg wt	Price	Range	Per head	Head
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	700–750	728	260.00/cwt	257.00–261.00	1,893	43
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	950–1000	986	224.28/cwt	224.25–225.00	2,211	27
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	700–750	732	248.00/cwt	248.00–248.00	1,815	32
Bulls	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	500–550	503	291.36/cwt	280.00–297.00	1,466	6
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	250–300	292	440.00/cwt	440.00–440.00	1,285	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	600–650	625	247.91/cwt	241.00–250.00	1,549	60
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	750–800	754	245.00/cwt	245.00–245.00	1,847	5
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	300–350	312	437.00/cwt	437.00–437.00	1,363	16
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	800–850	818	237.55/cwt	236.25–241.00	1,943	204
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	1000–1050	1,033	216.83/cwt	216.50–218.00	2,240	9
Steers	Medium and Large 1	800–850	825	259.50/cwt	259.50–259.50	2,141	68
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	500–550	517	313.90/cwt	300.00–325.00	1,623	132
Bulls	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	200–250	217	480.00/cwt	480.00–480.00	1,042	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	850–900	858	237.10/cwt	229.00–240.00	2,034	195
Steers	Medium and Large 1	850–900	861	248.00/cwt	248.00–248.00	2,135	12
Steers	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	800–850	818	234.67/cwt	232.00–236.00	1,920	9
Bulls	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	600–650	616	245.00/cwt	245.00–245.00	1,509	7
Bulls	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	350–400	385	373.48/cwt	345.00–394.00	1,438	17
Steers	Medium and Large 1	1000–1050	1,025	228.96/cwt	225.00–230.50	2,347	30
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	400–450	433	301.20/cwt	293.00–312.50	1,304	57
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Full	650–700	660	235.00/cwt	235.00–235.00	1,551	5
Steers	Medium and Large 1Full	650–700	690	245.00/cwt	245.00–245.00	1,691	10
Steers	Medium and Large 1Full	550–600	597	260.00/cwt	260.00–260.00	1,552	9
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	450–500	493	303.00/cwt	303.00–303.00	1,494	10
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	750–800	780	244.08/cwt	243.00–248.00	1,904	119
Heifers	Medium 1Thin Fleshed	600–650	629	260.50/cwt	260.50–260.50	1,639	183
Steers	Medium and Large 2Unweaned	250–300	296	390.00/cwt	390.00–390.00	1,154	5
Heifers	Medium and Large 2	750–800	795	220.50/cwt	220.50–220.50	1,753	11
Steers	Medium and Large 2	350–400	370	350.00/cwt	350.00–350.00	1,295	9
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	600–650	608	239.31/cwt	236.00–241.00	1,455	15
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	500–550	543	257.11/cwt	250.00–259.00	1,396	24
Steers	Medium 1Full	450–500	495	281.00/cwt	281.00–281.00	1,391	7
Steers	Medium 1Unweaned	650–700	694	222.50/cwt	222.50–222.50	1,544	6
Heifers	Medium 1Unweaned	350–400	380	305.00/cwt	305.00–305.00	1,159	4
Steers	Medium 1Unweaned	400–450	423	340.00/cwt	340.00–340.00	1,438	5
Steers	Medium 1Unweaned	450–500	492	297.50/cwt	297.50–297.50	1,464	11
Steers	Medium 1Unweaned	350–400	380	372.50/cwt	372.50–372.50	1,416	7
Heifers	Medium 1-2	500–550	545	254.00/cwt	254.00–254.00	1,384	33
Steers	Medium 1-2	650–700	652	253.00/cwt	253.00–253.00	1,650	6
Heifers	Medium 1Unweaned	450–500	466	255.92/cwt	250.00–274.00	1,193	46
Stock Cows	Medium 1	—	828	175.00/cwt	175.00–175.00	1,449	2
Heifers	Medium 1	750–800	753	226.50/cwt	226.50–226.50	1,706	6
Heifers	Medium 1	700–750	746	229.00/cwt	229.00–229.00	1,708	9
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,137	86.00/cwt	86.00–86.00	978	8
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,156	115.75/cwt	111.00–122.50	1,338	32
Steers	Large 1Unweaned	650–700	684	251.00/cwt	251.00–251.00	1,717	5
Bulls	Large 1	1200–1250	1,219	185.00/cwt	185.00–185.00	2,255	5
Heifers	Medium 1-2	650–700	684	232.50/cwt	232.50–232.50	1,590	8
Heifers	Medium 1-2	600–650	621	247.00/cwt	247.00–247.00	1,534	9
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,116	102.45/cwt	95.00–112.00	1,143	62
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,146	86.72/cwt	85.50–90.00	994	5
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,149	79.25/cwt	77.50–82.00	911	3
Cows	Boner 80-85%Light Weight	—	840	95.00/cwt	95.00–95.00	798	1
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,630	97.00/cwt	97.00–97.00	1,581	1
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,468	91.63/cwt	81.00–96.00	1,345	5
Bulls	—	—	1,638	116.00/cwt	116.00–116.00	1,900	2
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,825	134.00/cwt	134.00–134.00	2,446	1
Bulls	—	—	1,912	143.64/cwt	143.00–145.00	2,746	3
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,334	119.43/cwt	113.00–125.00	1,593	16
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,410	108.55/cwt	99.00–114.50	1,531	27
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,730	114.00/cwt	114.00–114.00	1,972	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	550–600	577	279.06/cwt	271.00–283.00	1,610	69
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	400–450	442	343.85/cwt	330.00–353.00	1,520	17
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	600–650	623	263.06/cwt	245.00–266.00	1,639	7
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	550–600	591	247.00/cwt	247.00–247.00	1,460	6
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	200–250	245	440.00/cwt	440.00–440.00	1,078	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	500–550	540	290.49/cwt	280.00–302.00	1,569	49
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	650–700	670	256.00/cwt	256.00–256.00	1,715	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	450–500	476	311.53/cwt	298.00–321.00	1,483	18
Bulls	Medium and Large 2Unweaned	400–450	410	290.00/cwt	290.00–290.00	1,189	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	800–850	814	229.80/cwt	226.00–232.00	1,871	115
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	900–950	938	215.00/cwt	215.00–215.00	2,017	24
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	750–800	771	238.00/cwt	238.00–238.00	1,835	39
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	300–350	348	385.00/cwt	385.00–385.00	1,340	16
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	450–500	493	312.50/cwt	312.50–312.50	1,541	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	550–600	587	248.01/cwt	246.00–250.00	1,456	10
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	750–800	797	247.50/cwt	247.50–247.50	1,973	6
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	700–750	707	249.00/cwt	249.00–249.00	1,760	3
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,042	1,900.00/head	1,900.00–1,900.00	1,900	5
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	350–400	362	374.83/cwt	362.00–382.50	1,357	30
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	950–1000	973	213.00/cwt	213.00–213.00	2,072	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	850–900	851	237.00/cwt	237.00–237.00	2,017	9
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	250–300	290	380.74/cwt	370.00–392.00	1,104	21
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	550–600	575	288.90/cwt	282.00–297.00	1,661	181
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	350–400	389	390.17/cwt	385.00–399.00	1,518	103
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	900–950	912	224.00/cwt	224.00–224.00	2,043	18
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	200–250	241	475.00/cwt	475.00–475.00	1,145	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	450–500	476	345.90/cwt	324.00–359.00	1,646	224
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	350–400	375	351.54/cwt	335.00–368.00	1,318	178
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	300–350	326	375.34/cwt	367.00–377.50	1,224	56
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	400–450	425	329.02/cwt	316.00–340.00	1,398	192
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	400–450	427	375.56/cwt	361.00–387.50	1,604	162
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	450–500	488	303.20/cwt	297.00–315.00	1,480	85
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	600–650	623	277.88/cwt	258.00–288.00	1,731	251
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,025	174.37/cwt	165.00–195.00	1,787	44
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,535	114.00/cwt	114.00–114.00	1,750	1
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,128	1,800.00/head	1,800.00–1,800.00	1,800	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	500–550	524	279.06/cwt	265.00–285.00	1,462	132
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	250–300	288	396.52/cwt	385.00–404.00	1,142	27
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	550–600	569	266.96/cwt	254.50–275.00	1,519	181
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,028	148.38/cwt	128.00–170.00	1,525	10
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,165	129.76/cwt	127.50–136.00	1,512	4
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,172	2,350.00/head	2,350.00–2,350.00	2,350	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	650–700	667	240.27/cwt	236.00–244.00	1,603	29
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,094	157.99/cwt	145.00–175.00	1,728	5
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	300–350	322	426.98/cwt	420.00–435.00	1,375	20
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	650–700	672	238.00/cwt	238.00–238.00	1,599	5
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	450–500	474	279.26/cwt	255.00–295.00	1,324	26
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	700–750	706	240.00/cwt	240.00–240.00	1,694	13
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	650–700	669	265.15/cwt	253.00–272.00	1,774	95
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	350–400	397	326.15/cwt	326.00–330.00	1,295	25

How this sale compares

Montana weighted averages

One sale is one barn on one day. The state ladder is every Montana auction USDA reported that week, weighted by head — the fairer test of whether a lot sold well.

Montana feeder prices, every weight →Every state and region →