Name: Public Auction Yards livestock auction prices — 2025-04-23
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2025-04-23

Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week: Feeder cattle were too lightly tested today to develop an accurate market trend, however steady to higher undertones were noticed on like quality feeders. Quality was mostly plain to average today with a few consignments of attractive cattle noticed. Demand for all feeders was good to very good despite a lower quality offering compared to last weeks feeder special. Feeders were mostly offered in small groups or as singles. Demand for feeder cattle suitable to go to grass was very good, with active buyer participation seen on all cattle light or green enough to make into yearlings. Demand from packer buyers was very good as well, as they pushed to buy attractive, replacement quality heifers away from replacement buyers. Market activity was mostly active with good participation seen from a large buyer pool despite a light to moderate offering of feeders. Bidders were noticed both ringside and over the internet this sale. Weigh up cows comprised a large portion of todays sale. All weigh up cows sold on good to very good demand for light to moderate offerings. Regional packers and major packers continue to show very good demand for cows. Regional packers purchased cows to slaughter and major packers mostly purchased cows to feed. Slaughter cows sold with higher undertones on all classes in a narrow comparison. The best demand for slaughter cows was for fleshy breaking or large framed boning cows. Demand for feeding cows was the main driver of the market again this week with a large crowd of private feeding cow buyers on hand actively bidding on offerings. Feeding cows sold mostly 3.00-6.00 higher on boning and breaking flesh cows, thin fleshed lean feeding cows sold 5.00-10.00 higher in a narrow comparison. Thin feeding cows saw the largest uptick in price as these cows offered buyers the most compensatory gain. Feeding cow buyers showed good demand for cow with some youth as they purchased cows away from rebreed buyers. Canadian buyers continue to be a large part of the feeding cow market. Demand for cows to ship north was very good. Cow quality was mixed today from plain to very attractive. Weigh up conditions were mixed. The quality of cows going to feed continues to vary greatly from buyer to buyer as several buyers were willing to take cows which were lame or slightly blemished and put them on feed or run them on pasture until cow supplies tighten later in the spring and early summer. Slaughter bulls sold mostly steady to 5.00 higher. Bull quality this week was average to attractive. A portion of the bulls were purchased to feed again this week as buyers purchased light weight, thin fleshed bulls, mostly under 1800 lbs for this purpose. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold mostly steady to firm on like quality offerings. Quality this week was average to attractive. Demand from rebreed and receipt buyers remains very good. Demand from feeding buyers was stronger this sale as several sets of young heifers which never bred sold on good demand. Most light weight two year old heifers which never calved were purchased to feed and blend onto loads.

Weight class

Heifers · summary 500–600 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

500–600 lb heifers averaged $337.40/cwt on 29 head. That ranks 1 of 19 comparable sales and sits −84.14 against this barn's trailing median of $421.54.

Average price

$337.40

29 head · 550 lb average

Value per head Derived

$1,856

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

$431

per head · Medium and Large 1 over Medium 2

$53.24/cwt at this weight

vs the market

−12.11

vs MT average

+7.45 vs national

What quality paid 500–600 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	561	343.24	1,924	23
Medium and Large 1-2	505	340.00	1,717	3thin
Medium 2	515	290.00	1,494	3thin

One grade step is worth $53.24/cwt here — about $431 a head. Across this sale the premium is widest at 500–600 lb. USDA reports each grade on its own line and never publishes the spread.

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 sale29 hd

337.40

—

MT average2 barns · 89 hd

349.51

−12.11

National average175 barns · 11,256 hd

329.95

+7.45

This barn, trailing median19 sales

421.54

−84.14

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	1,808	173.91	3,144	45
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	High	1,668	161.26	2,689	59
Cows	Boner 80-85%	Low	1,443	160.62	2,318	174
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Average	1,157	151.60	1,754	93
Dairy Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Average	1,853	145.50	2,696	6thin
Dairy Cows	Lean 85-90%	Average	1,440	122.75	1,768	2thin

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	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,294	$3,629	17
Bred Cows	2nd/3rd Stage (4-9 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,245	$3,100	1thin
Bred Cows	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	1,647	$2,926	8
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1,500	$2,525	8
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,278	$2,500	2thin
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,077	$2,400	12
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,272	$2,375	5
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	1,401	$2,300	8

Every lot, as filed

104 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
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	800–850	821	246.00/cwt	246.00–246.00	2,020	5
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	650–700	656	277.27/cwt	272.50–282.00	1,819	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1	500–550	517	388.82/cwt	387.50–400.00	2,010	10
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,272	2,375.00/head	2,375.00–2,375.00	2,375	5
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	700–750	720	269.35/cwt	265.00–280.00	1,939	7
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	750–800	780	259.00/cwt	259.00–259.00	2,020	6
Steers	Medium and Large 1	550–600	587	368.21/cwt	361.00–388.00	2,161	44
Steers	Medium and Large 1	650–700	663	320.00/cwt	320.00–320.00	2,122	4
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,548	2,957.36/head	2,900.00–3,000.00	2,957	5
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	50–100	75	800.00/head	800.00–800.00	800	2
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	650–700	675	303.82/cwt	303.00–304.00	2,051	22
Steers	Medium and Large 1	1000–1050	1,033	250.00/cwt	250.00–250.00	2,583	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	800–850	841	274.00/cwt	274.00–274.00	2,304	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	750–800	760	276.66/cwt	274.00–277.50	2,103	37
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,500	2,525.00/head	2,525.00–2,525.00	2,525	8
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,294	3,629.40/head	3,150.00–3,675.00	3,629	17
Steers	Medium and Large 1	800–850	812	285.00/cwt	285.00–285.00	2,314	16
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	450–500	476	373.68/cwt	372.50–377.50	1,779	8
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Replacement	700–750	723	304.46/cwt	304.00–305.00	2,201	92
Steers	Medium and Large 1	600–650	605	342.00/cwt	342.00–342.00	2,069	1
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,039	229.16/cwt	198.00–266.00	2,381	122
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,180	188.41/cwt	168.00–225.00	2,223	42
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	400–450	416	403.43/cwt	395.00–410.00	1,678	7
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	500–550	548	355.00/cwt	355.00–355.00	1,945	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	450–500	474	361.29/cwt	352.50–380.00	1,713	6
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	971	213.31/cwt	171.00–236.00	2,071	32
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	350–400	395	417.50/cwt	417.50–417.50	1,649	2
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	750–800	784	281.00/cwt	281.00–281.00	2,203	5
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	550–600	574	338.45/cwt	335.00–350.00	1,943	9
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	700–750	709	286.28/cwt	282.00–299.00	2,030	12
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	500–550	505	340.00/cwt	340.00–340.00	1,717	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	200–250	245	390.00/cwt	390.00–390.00	956	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	450–500	474	354.44/cwt	340.00–360.00	1,680	16
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	1000–1050	1,045	217.00/cwt	217.00–217.00	2,268	4
Steers	Medium and Large 2	600–650	635	314.00/cwt	314.00–314.00	1,994	3
Bulls	Medium and Large 2	500–550	530	330.00/cwt	330.00–330.00	1,749	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	250–300	260	470.00/cwt	470.00–470.00	1,222	1
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	650–700	677	289.31/cwt	275.00–293.00	1,959	10
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	987	192.41/cwt	157.50–217.50	1,899	11
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	850–900	897	248.00/cwt	248.00–248.00	2,225	14
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	600–650	631	329.37/cwt	327.50–330.00	2,078	4
Steers	Medium and Large 2Fleshy	750–800	773	254.00/cwt	254.00–254.00	1,963	6
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,402	142.72/cwt	136.00–149.00	2,001	7
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,451	156.00/cwt	149.00–159.50	2,264	18
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,509	165.10/cwt	160.00–170.00	2,491	12
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,507	140.35/cwt	129.00–146.00	2,115	13
Bulls	—	—	1,937	177.88/cwt	170.00–185.50	3,446	16
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,523	173.16/cwt	172.00–175.00	2,637	6
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,571	164.36/cwt	157.50–167.50	2,582	6
Bulls	—	—	1,613	163.81/cwt	157.00–169.00	2,642	10
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,715	164.54/cwt	164.00–168.00	2,822	11
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,662	160.36/cwt	154.00–163.50	2,665	36
Dairy Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,590	127.50/cwt	127.50–127.50	2,027	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,109	150.34/cwt	150.00–151.00	1,667	3
Bulls	—	—	2,103	189.41/cwt	187.00–193.00	3,983	6
Dairy Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,290	118.00/cwt	118.00–118.00	1,522	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,087	138.63/cwt	130.00–145.00	1,507	11
Cows	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	—	940	100.00/cwt	92.50–107.50	940	2
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,635	162.49/cwt	159.50–164.00	2,657	11
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,165	118.43/cwt	110.00–129.00	1,380	13
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,229	161.02/cwt	160.00–162.00	1,979	4
Dairy Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,853	145.50/cwt	145.50–145.50	2,696	6
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,715	144.00/cwt	144.00–144.00	2,470	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,164	159.83/cwt	153.00–165.00	1,860	42
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,433	168.11/cwt	165.00–170.00	2,409	61
Bulls	—Heavy Weight	—	3,040	180.00/cwt	180.00–180.00	5,472	1
Steers	Large 1	800–850	813	265.00/cwt	265.00–265.00	2,154	2
Bulls	Large 1-2	1100–1150	1,145	185.00/cwt	185.00–185.00	2,118	1
Bulls	Large 1	1200–1250	1,205	202.00/cwt	202.00–202.00	2,434	1
Bulls	Large 1-2	1050–1100	1,055	215.00/cwt	215.00–215.00	2,268	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,193	168.12/cwt	166.00–170.50	2,006	18
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,429	160.01/cwt	151.00–165.00	2,287	63
Steers	Medium 1	750–800	773	289.00/cwt	289.00–289.00	2,234	11
Heifers	Medium 1	650–700	698	285.00/cwt	285.00–285.00	1,989	5
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	850–900	867	275.73/cwt	265.50–277.00	2,391	72
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	250–300	274	495.00/cwt	495.00–495.00	1,356	7
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,245	3,100.00/head	3,100.00–3,100.00	3,100	1
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Non-Legible BANGS	—	1,077	2,400.00/head	2,400.00–2,400.00	2,400	12
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	600–650	629	319.63/cwt	309.00–322.00	2,010	21
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	500–550	526	351.19/cwt	349.00–352.50	1,847	8
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,278	2,500.00/head	2,500.00–2,500.00	2,500	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	800–850	849	279.00/cwt	279.00–279.00	2,369	7
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	650–700	691	288.00/cwt	288.00–288.00	1,990	17
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,401	2,300.00/head	2,300.00–2,300.00	2,300	8
Steers	Medium and Large 2	750–800	783	278.00/cwt	278.00–278.00	2,177	2
Steers	Medium and Large 2	800–850	833	276.00/cwt	276.00–276.00	2,299	2
Steers	Medium and Large 2	400–450	447	330.00/cwt	330.00–330.00	1,475	3
Steers	Medium and Large 2	550–600	587	325.00/cwt	325.00–325.00	1,908	3
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	450–500	478	375.00/cwt	375.00–375.00	1,793	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	550–600	579	339.00/cwt	339.00–339.00	1,963	15
Steers	Medium 1	700–750	701	280.00/cwt	280.00–280.00	1,963	5
Heifers	Medium 1	750–800	796	276.00/cwt	276.00–276.00	2,197	21
Stock Cows	Medium 1	—	998	150.00/cwt	150.00–150.00	1,497	2
Stock Cows	Medium 1	—	784	233.84/cwt	225.00–242.50	1,833	13
Heifers	Medium and Large 2	650–700	693	264.00/cwt	264.00–264.00	1,830	8
Steers	Medium and Large 2Fleshy	700–750	733	272.00/cwt	272.00–272.00	1,994	2
Bred Cows	Large 1	—	1,813	2,875.00/head	2,875.00–2,875.00	2,875	3
Steers	Medium 2	550–600	563	285.00/cwt	285.00–285.00	1,605	2
Steers	Medium 2Fleshy	650–700	683	235.00/cwt	235.00–235.00	1,605	3
Heifers	Medium 2	500–550	515	290.00/cwt	290.00–290.00	1,494	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1	450–500	474	415.00/cwt	415.00–415.00	1,967	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1	850–900	864	283.00/cwt	283.00–283.00	2,445	14
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	300–350	328	460.00/cwt	460.00–460.00	1,509	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	350–400	381	445.00/cwt	445.00–445.00	1,695	6

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 →