Name: Miles City Livestock Commission livestock auction prices — 2024-12-17
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2024-12-17

Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week: Steer calves under 450 lbs sold mostly 15.00-20.00 higher, steer calves over 450 lbs sold mostly steady to 5.00 higher. Heifer calves all sold steady to 5.00 lower. Quality this week was mixed from plain to very attractive. Yearling steers and heifers were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however steady to higher undertones were noticed. Large packages and load lots sold on very good demand as quality was mostly attractive to very attractive. Small packages of calves sold with significant discounts to load lots and large packages. Quality on small packages was also significantly lower than large packages. Demand for light weight steers was very good this sale as demand from wheat and western grass buyers was very good. Light weight heifer quality was not as attractive this week which hampered demand. Demand for heifers over 600 lbs was very good as feeding buyers and replacement buyers bid aggressively over light offerings. Most of these offerings were purchased by feeding buyers this week. Market activity was mostly active today with a large buyer pool on hand. Bidding was active both ringside as well as over the internet. Weigh up cows sold on moderate to good demand for moderate offerings. Demand for slaughter cows remains light, but was stronger than last week as today was the last opportunity for packer buyers to buy cows prior to the holiday break. Slaughter cows sold mostly steady to 2.00 higher on boning and lean cows, breaking cows were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however firm undertones were noticed. Feeding cow demand was mostly good this sale as both private feeders and packers both showed good demand for cows to feed. Private buyers continue to buy slightly lame or slightly blemished cows to but away on feed. Packer buyers were also active and buying slightly lame or blemished cows to put away to feed for the upcoming holidays. Feeding cows sold mostly 2.00-4.00 higher on high quality cows suitable to feed to premium white. Thin feeding cows sold mostly steady to 2.00 higher. Cow quality this week was average to attractive. Slaughter bulls sold mostly steady to 5.00 lower in a narrow comparison. Weigh up conditions were mostly average this week for cows and below average for bulls. Bull quality this week was mostly plain with many low dressing bulls on offer. Young cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold mostly 10.00-15.00 higher on a higher quality offering. Young age offerings sold mostly steady with prices two weeks ago. Young age cows sold on mostly moderate to good demand for light offerings. Quality was mostly average to attractive.

Weight class

Steers · summary 500–600 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

500–600 lb steers averaged $343.58/cwt on 211 head. That ranks 1 of 13 comparable sales and sits −142.65 against this barn's trailing median of $486.23.

Average price

$343.58

211 head · 534 lb average

Value per head Derived

$1,835

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

$25

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

$30.69/cwt at this weight

vs the market

+8.73

vs MT average

+16.95 vs national

What quality paid 500–600 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	532	346.20	1,841	180
Large 1	533	334.00	1,780	14thin
Medium 1	543	333.00	1,808	8thin
Medium and Large 1-2	576	315.51	1,816	9thin

One grade step is worth $30.69/cwt here — about $25 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

13 sales

Steers 500–600 lb: high $512.23, low $440.01, median $486.23 across 13 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 sale211 hd

343.58

—

MT average4 barns · 737 hd

334.85

+8.73

National average173 barns · 17,754 hd

326.63

+16.95

This barn, trailing median13 sales

486.23

−142.65

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	123.73	2,235	22
Cows	Boner 80-85%	Very Low	1,382	118.54	1,638	153
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Low	1,621	118.35	1,919	7thin
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Average	1,172	113.72	1,332	221

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/3rd Stage (4-9 mo)	Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	1,439	$2,103	3thin
Bred Cows	2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,223	$1,962	53
Cow-Calf Pairs	Open	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1,115	$2,775	36

Every lot, as filed

86 lots · USDA AMS · Miles City Livestock Commission Auction - Miles City, MT

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
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	850–900	850	235.00/cwt	235.00–235.00	1,998	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1	700–750	716	256.34/cwt	245.00–265.00	1,835	14
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	750–800	786	245.50/cwt	245.50–245.50	1,930	26
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	300–350	335	455.00/cwt	455.00–455.00	1,524	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1Full	550–600	593	314.00/cwt	314.00–314.00	1,862	5
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	400–450	417	352.51/cwt	340.00–367.50	1,470	61
Steers	Medium and Large 1	650–700	653	283.00/cwt	283.00–283.00	1,848	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1	400–450	415	430.16/cwt	401.00–450.00	1,785	44
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	450–500	491	370.00/cwt	370.00–370.00	1,817	7
Steers	Medium and Large 1	450–500	481	371.38/cwt	357.00–397.50	1,786	54
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	300–350	330	412.07/cwt	406.00–415.00	1,360	9
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	450–500	473	331.15/cwt	322.00–338.00	1,566	64
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	400–450	437	338.40/cwt	337.50–342.00	1,479	15
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	350–400	372	371.89/cwt	371.00–372.50	1,383	10
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	450–500	473	331.00/cwt	331.00–331.00	1,566	5
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	900–950	916	227.11/cwt	227.00–227.50	2,080	9
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	600–650	628	268.28/cwt	268.00–269.00	1,685	7
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	550–600	570	294.83/cwt	292.00–295.00	1,681	53
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1Thin Fleshed	—	807	184.00/cwt	184.00–184.00	1,485	7
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,245	2,005.50/head	1,900.00–2,075.00	2,006	44
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Thin Fleshed	—	1,115	1,750.00/head	1,750.00–1,750.00	1,750	9
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	400–450	426	438.00/cwt	438.00–438.00	1,866	7
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	300–350	347	390.00/cwt	390.00–390.00	1,353	3
Cow-Calf Pairs	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,115	2,775.00/head	2,775.00–2,775.00	2,775	36
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	887	175.62/cwt	127.00–196.00	1,558	33
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,038	125.63/cwt	121.50–150.00	1,304	11
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,075	147.54/cwt	123.00–192.00	1,586	36
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	500–550	512	319.93/cwt	313.00–321.00	1,638	15
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	650–700	652	262.00/cwt	262.00–262.00	1,708	7
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	400–450	438	339.05/cwt	337.00–340.00	1,485	16
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	300–350	325	443.46/cwt	440.00–445.00	1,441	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	500–550	518	327.50/cwt	327.50–327.50	1,696	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	550–600	592	312.08/cwt	311.00–312.50	1,848	7
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,439	2,103.15/head	1,925.00–2,200.00	2,103	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	800–850	817	249.80/cwt	242.00–250.50	2,041	12
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	934	191.63/cwt	150.00–225.50	1,790	122
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	400–450	445	380.00/cwt	380.00–380.00	1,691	1
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,346	94.16/cwt	94.00–95.00	1,267	7
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,608	114.15/cwt	108.75–118.00	1,836	3
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,892	122.00/cwt	122.00–122.00	2,308	3
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,370	122.17/cwt	116.00–128.50	1,674	117
Bulls	—Light Weight	—	1,405	118.66/cwt	115.00–122.00	1,667	2
Bulls	—	—	2,305	154.00/cwt	154.00–154.00	3,550	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,647	123.00/cwt	123.00–123.00	2,026	3
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,199	119.78/cwt	115.00–124.00	1,436	145
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,145	128.95/cwt	127.00–132.50	1,476	3
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,197	104.66/cwt	101.00–109.00	1,253	10
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,600	82.00/cwt	82.00–82.00	1,312	1
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,430	106.75/cwt	105.00–110.00	1,527	5
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,585	117.00/cwt	117.00–117.00	1,854	1
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,502	101.13/cwt	99.00–102.00	1,519	3
Cows	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	—	949	87.92/cwt	83.00–96.00	834	5
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,085	83.48/cwt	77.50–87.00	906	5
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,339	110.78/cwt	103.00–116.00	1,483	16
Cows	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	—	985	77.50/cwt	77.50–77.50	763	1
Heifers	Large 1-2	400–450	401	292.50/cwt	292.50–292.50	1,173	4
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,330	126.00/cwt	126.00–126.00	1,676	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,120	105.33/cwt	94.00–115.50	1,180	44
Bulls	—	—	1,811	119.87/cwt	110.00–133.00	2,171	17
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,154	95.25/cwt	92.00–98.00	1,099	8
Bulls	—	—	1,920	146.49/cwt	146.00–147.00	2,813	2
Steers	Large 1	700–750	740	257.00/cwt	257.00–257.00	1,902	2
Steers	Large 1	500–550	533	334.00/cwt	334.00–334.00	1,780	14
Steers	Large 1	400–450	433	411.00/cwt	411.00–411.00	1,780	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	350–400	370	381.25/cwt	370.00–385.00	1,411	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1	350–400	389	451.06/cwt	445.00–453.00	1,755	24
Steers	Medium and Large 1Full	650–700	699	256.00/cwt	256.00–256.00	1,789	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1	550–600	558	328.66/cwt	315.00–330.00	1,834	45
Steers	Medium and Large 1	600–650	623	311.31/cwt	305.00–317.75	1,939	155
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	500–550	517	316.14/cwt	305.50–327.00	1,634	92
Steers	Medium and Large 1	500–550	519	354.09/cwt	333.00–361.00	1,838	127
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	450–500	458	308.00/cwt	308.00–308.00	1,411	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	550–600	573	262.00/cwt	262.00–262.00	1,501	10
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	600–650	607	301.92/cwt	294.00–304.00	1,833	5
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	600–650	619	283.00/cwt	283.00–283.00	1,752	67
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	550–600	573	329.00/cwt	329.00–329.00	1,885	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	600–650	601	313.50/cwt	313.50–313.50	1,884	4
Steers	Medium 2	450–500	456	252.50/cwt	252.50–252.50	1,151	14
Heifers	Medium 1-2	650–700	679	243.00/cwt	243.00–243.00	1,650	11
Steers	Medium 1	500–550	543	333.00/cwt	333.00–333.00	1,808	8
Steers	Medium and Large 2	350–400	394	375.00/cwt	375.00–375.00	1,478	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	500–550	522	298.64/cwt	296.00–302.00	1,559	18
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	450–500	490	333.93/cwt	317.50–350.00	1,636	8
Heifers	Large 1-2	450–500	459	260.00/cwt	260.00–260.00	1,193	8
Heifers	Large 1	550–600	555	270.00/cwt	270.00–270.00	1,499	1
Heifers	Large 1	650–700	683	232.00/cwt	232.00–232.00	1,585	2

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 →