Name: Public Auction Yards livestock auction prices — 2024-10-16
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2024-10-16

Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week: All feeder cattle were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Quality was mostly plain to average today. Most feeders were offered in small packages or as singles. Demand was mostly moderate to good for light offerings. Market activity was mostly moderate. Weigh up cows comprised most of todays sale. Private feeding buyers showed good to very good demand for all cows suitable to feed. Slightly lame cows, cows with small lumps or slight blemishes were all purchased by feeding cow buyers this sale as they out bid slaughter cow buyers. Very few cows were purchased for immediate harvest this sale. Slaughter cows sold mostly 4.00-8.00 higher on breaking cows; boning and lean cows sold steady to 1.00 higher. Feeding cows sold with the best demand again this week. Feeding cows sold mostly 3.00-6.00 higher. Large gains were seen again this week for low yielding cows as buyers purchased more low yielding and blemished cows to put on feed. Bidding was very active for high quality feeding cows. A very large buyer pool was seen for feeding cows this week. Cow quality was mixed from plain to very attractive. Weigh conditions were mixed today. Slaughter bulls sold mostly 2.00-3.00 higher. Feeding bull sold generally steady. Quality today was mostly average to attractive for bulls and similar to last weeks offering. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold mostly 5.00 higher. Demand from rebreed buyers was mostly good. A moderate offering of bred cows was seen this sale and demand was mostly moderate to good. Notably, many sets of older heavier weight cows were just weighted as demand from feeding buyers and packers was strong enough to buy these offerings away from replacement buyers.

Weight class

Heifers · summary 500–600 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

500–600 lb heifers averaged $265.83/cwt on 23 head. That ranks 1 of 19 comparable sales and sits −155.71 against this barn's trailing median of $421.54.

Average price

$265.83

23 head · 513 lb average

Value per head Derived

$1,365

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

—

single grade reported

vs the market

−8.23

vs MT average

+8.02 vs national

What quality paid 500–600 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	513	265.83	1,365	23

Only one grade was reported at this weight, so there is no spread to compute.

This barn's trailing prices 500–600 lb

19 sales

Heifers 500–600 lb: high $464.07, low $350.88, median $421.54 across 19 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 sale23 hd

265.83

—

MT average5 barns · 843 hd

274.06

−8.23

National average191 barns · 21,361 hd

257.81

+8.02

This barn, trailing median19 sales

421.54

−155.71

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	—	Average	1,730	148.12	2,562	59
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	High	1,630	131.81	2,148	45
Cows	Boner 80-85%	High	1,397	130.39	1,822	308
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Low	1,183	118.17	1,398	228

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	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,206	$2,120	32
Bred Cows	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,048	$1,918	30
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1,335	$1,875	4thin
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1,267	$1,817	12
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	1,384	$1,760	25
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,304	$1,620	50
Bred Cows	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,263	$1,600	2thin
Bred Heifers	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	(<2 yrs)	1,067	$2,100	6
Bred Heifers	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	(<2 yrs)	871	$2,065	17
Cow-Calf Pairs	Open	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,236	$3,200	9
Cow-Calf Pairs	Open	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1,590	$3,000	8
Cow-Calf Pairs	Open	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,641	$2,800	7

Every lot, as filed

96 lots · USDA AMS · Public Auction Yards Livestock Cattle Auction - Billings, MT (Wed)

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
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,287	1,822.33/head	1,800.00–1,825.00	1,822	9
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,206	2,120.12/head	1,800.00–2,275.00	2,120	32
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,335	1,875.00/head	1,875.00–1,875.00	1,875	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	550–600	570	274.50/cwt	274.50–274.50	1,565	24
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,335	122.00/cwt	122.00–122.00	1,629	1
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Non-Legible BANGS	—	1,207	1,800.00/head	1,800.00–1,800.00	1,800	3
Bred Heifers	Medium and Large 1	—	1,067	2,100.00/head	2,100.00–2,100.00	2,100	6
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,384	1,759.83/head	1,650.00–1,825.00	1,760	25
Steers	Medium and Large 1	1050–1100	1,081	219.00/cwt	219.00–219.00	2,367	8
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	400–450	409	350.00/cwt	350.00–350.00	1,432	10
Cow-Calf Pairs	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,641	2,800.00/head	2,800.00–2,800.00	2,800	7
Cow-Calf Pairs	Medium and Large 1	—	1,236	3,200.00/head	3,200.00–3,200.00	3,200	9
Cow-Calf Pairs	Medium and Large 1	—	1,590	3,000.00/head	3,000.00–3,000.00	3,000	8
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,263	1,600.00/head	1,600.00–1,600.00	1,600	2
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	950–1000	980	213.00/cwt	213.00–213.00	2,087	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	350–400	370	394.87/cwt	392.50–400.00	1,461	30
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	500–550	529	273.00/cwt	273.00–273.00	1,444	8
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	300–350	301	380.00/cwt	380.00–380.00	1,144	16
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	850–900	862	225.50/cwt	225.50–225.50	1,944	9
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	1000–1050	1,008	212.98/cwt	211.00–213.50	2,147	5
Steers	Medium and Large 1	750–800	780	260.00/cwt	260.00–260.00	2,028	14
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	500–550	549	287.00/cwt	287.00–287.00	1,576	13
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	700–750	724	245.00/cwt	245.00–245.00	1,774	14
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Full	850–900	861	217.00/cwt	217.00–217.00	1,868	5
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,069	165.62/cwt	133.00–190.00	1,770	57
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1Fancy	—	957	208.00/cwt	208.00–208.00	1,991	11
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Thin Fleshed	—	1,020	1,900.00/head	1,900.00–1,900.00	1,900	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	300–350	306	416.00/cwt	415.00–425.00	1,273	10
Bred Heifers	Medium and Large 1	—	900	2,200.00/head	2,200.00–2,200.00	2,200	11
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	934	201.93/cwt	155.00–215.00	1,886	203
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1Thin Fleshed	—	807	194.59/cwt	192.50–199.00	1,570	5
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,304	1,620.33/head	1,550.00–1,650.00	1,620	50
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	—	955	1,500.00/head	1,500.00–1,500.00	1,500	4
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	993	1,716.50/head	1,600.00–1,850.00	1,717	2
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	958	161.01/cwt	150.00–172.50	1,542	11
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	—	745	130.00/cwt	130.00–130.00	969	1
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2Full	400–450	414	305.00/cwt	305.00–305.00	1,263	8
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,078	2,025.19/head	2,000.00–2,100.00	2,025	20
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,048	132.42/cwt	130.00–135.00	1,388	6
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	1050–1100	1,065	190.00/cwt	190.00–190.00	2,024	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	700–750	722	253.00/cwt	253.00–253.00	1,827	9
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	350–400	360	370.00/cwt	370.00–370.00	1,332	6
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,427	137.51/cwt	135.00–144.00	1,962	84
Bulls	—	—	1,385	151.00/cwt	151.00–151.00	2,091	4
Bulls	—	—	2,100	164.77/cwt	164.00–165.00	3,460	5
Bulls	—	—	2,030	155.64/cwt	148.00–160.00	3,159	9
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,494	137.52/cwt	127.00–147.00	2,055	16
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,533	148.79/cwt	147.50–152.00	2,281	5
Cows	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	—	876	94.60/cwt	90.00–104.00	829	5
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,247	131.49/cwt	127.50–145.00	1,640	55
Bulls	—	—	2,085	166.59/cwt	164.00–172.00	3,473	4
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Heavy Weight	—	2,065	136.50/cwt	136.50–136.50	2,819	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,613	121.50/cwt	121.50–121.50	1,960	6
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,403	114.16/cwt	112.00–120.00	1,602	5
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,399	109.22/cwt	102.00–112.00	1,528	12
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,300	129.00/cwt	129.00–129.00	1,677	1
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,403	117.50/cwt	113.00–121.00	1,649	28
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,795	139.50/cwt	139.50–139.50	2,504	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,722	128.48/cwt	123.00–133.00	2,212	3
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,201	123.60/cwt	118.00–128.00	1,484	67
Bulls	—	—	1,739	143.75/cwt	134.00–147.00	2,500	16
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,206	109.80/cwt	107.00–116.00	1,324	8
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,030	85.00/cwt	85.00–85.00	876	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,158	111.93/cwt	101.00–118.00	1,296	65
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,650	137.01/cwt	135.00–139.00	2,261	16
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,568	130.49/cwt	126.00–133.00	2,046	18
Heifers	Large 1	1050–1100	1,096	204.87/cwt	202.50–205.00	2,245	18
Stock Cows	Large 1	—	1,230	141.00/cwt	141.00–141.00	1,734	1
Heifers	Large 1-2Unweaned	250–300	280	340.00/cwt	340.00–340.00	952	4
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,383	130.94/cwt	118.00–135.00	1,811	178
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,120	99.86/cwt	90.00–106.00	1,118	26
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,245	122.00/cwt	122.00–122.00	1,519	1
Heifers	Medium 1-2	650–700	668	232.50/cwt	232.50–232.50	1,553	27
Heifers	Large 1Fleshy	1250–1300	1,290	185.00/cwt	185.00–185.00	2,387	1
Steers	Large 1Unweaned	350–400	382	327.50/cwt	327.50–327.50	1,251	10
Heifers	Large 1	850–900	875	212.50/cwt	212.50–212.50	1,859	2
Bulls	Large 1	1100–1150	1,115	215.00/cwt	215.00–215.00	2,397	1
Heifers	Large 1	1100–1150	1,104	205.00/cwt	205.00–205.00	2,263	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 2	800–850	836	207.50/cwt	207.50–207.50	1,735	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	950–1000	965	208.00/cwt	208.00–208.00	2,007	11
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	750–800	794	231.00/cwt	231.00–231.00	1,834	7
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	300–350	340	355.00/cwt	355.00–355.00	1,207	14
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	350–400	359	335.00/cwt	335.00–335.00	1,203	13
Bred Heifers	Medium 1	—	819	1,817.30/head	1,800.00–1,850.00	1,817	6
Bulls	Medium and Large 1Full	400–450	441	315.00/cwt	315.00–315.00	1,389	7
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	600–650	601	235.00/cwt	235.00–235.00	1,412	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Full	500–550	505	262.00/cwt	262.00–262.00	1,323	15
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Full	400–450	434	291.00/cwt	291.00–291.00	1,263	8
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	1000–1050	1,020	212.50/cwt	212.50–212.50	2,168	2
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	—	850	155.00/cwt	155.00–155.00	1,318	1
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	—	1,295	176.00/cwt	176.00–176.00	2,279	2
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	450–500	492	280.00/cwt	280.00–280.00	1,378	6
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Full	450–500	485	279.00/cwt	279.00–279.00	1,353	10
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	850–900	870	222.50/cwt	222.50–222.50	1,936	1
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Full	1000–1050	1,041	205.00/cwt	205.00–205.00	2,134	8
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Full	900–950	918	210.00/cwt	210.00–210.00	1,928	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 →