Name: Public Auction Yards livestock auction prices — 2025-11-26
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2025-11-26

Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week: Feeder cattle were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Feeder cattle offerings were very light this week. Quality was mostly plain and offered in small packages with many singles in the offering. Many calves were blemished as ranchers cleaned up pens and pastures prior to the holiday. A very small crowd was on hand for todays sale. Several buyers were out of the market due to the holiday. Market activity was slow. Weigh up cows sold on mostly light to moderate demand and offerings. Feeding cows sold mostly 4.00-8.00 lower on both high quality cows suitable to feed to premium white and thin feeding cows. Demand for feeding cows was lighter this week with fewer private buyers noticed. Many continue to report full lots as heavy offerings of cows have been seen and purchased to feed over the last few months. Demand for slaughter cows was stronger this sale as buyers pushed to finish filling loads started earlier in the week. Too few cows were purchased to develop an accurate market trend, however higher undertones were noticed on all boning and lean cows. Breaking cows sold with lower undertones this sale. Most breaking cows were purchased to return to feed. Quality this week was mostly average to attractive. Weigh conditions were average to below average. Slaughter bulls were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however steady undertones were noticed. Most bulls were purchased by feeding bull buyers this week as they tried to finish filling loads prior to the holiday. Feeding bulls sold steady in a narrow comparison. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold mostly 10.00 lower on a smaller, poorer quality offering. Fewer buyers were in the stands this week buying young cows and demand was lighter as a result. Demand for young offerings was mostly light to moderate.

Weight class

Heifers · summary 500–600 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

500–600 lb heifers averaged $349.51/cwt on 12 head. That ranks 1 of 19 comparable sales and sits −72.03 against this barn's trailing median of $421.54.

Average price

$349.51

12 head · 538 lb average

Value per head Derived

$1,879

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

$144

per head · Medium and Large 1 over Medium 1

$5.42/cwt at this weight

vs the market

−13.70

vs MT average

+0.14 vs national

What quality paid 500–600 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	543	350.42	1,903	10thin
Medium 1	510	345.00	1,760	2thin

One grade step is worth $5.42/cwt here — about $144 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

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 sale12 hd

349.51

—

MT average4 barns · 1,065 hd

363.21

−13.70

National average34 barns · 3,821 hd

349.37

+0.14

This barn, trailing median19 sales

421.54

−72.03

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	1,794	170.53	3,060	32
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Low	1,623	157.03	2,549	64
Cows	Boner 80-85%	High	1,365	150.67	2,056	159
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Very Low	1,155	139.85	1,615	126
Dairy Cows	Boner 80-85%	Low	935	105.00	982	1thin

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)	1,202	$3,236	14
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,152	$2,860	5
Bred Cows	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	Young (2-4 yrs)	1,105	$2,771	8
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	1,553	$2,700	2thin
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1,385	$2,500	1thin
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1,302	$2,470	5
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	1,220	$2,383	6
Bred Cows	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,374	$2,304	26
Bred Cows	1st Stage (1-3 mo)	Middle Aged (5-8 yrs)	1,080	$2,200	1thin
Bred Cows	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,309	$1,970	15
Bred Cows	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	Aged (>8 yrs)	1,245	$1,850	1thin

Every lot, as filed

83 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
Heifers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	400–450	428	425.00/cwt	425.00–425.00	1,819	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	550–600	573	320.00/cwt	320.00–320.00	1,834	2
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	450–500	479	382.50/cwt	382.50–382.50	1,832	5
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	700–750	725	260.00/cwt	260.00–260.00	1,885	2
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	800–850	831	270.00/cwt	270.00–270.00	2,244	4
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	450–500	469	420.00/cwt	420.00–420.00	1,970	4
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	500–550	500	400.00/cwt	400.00–400.00	2,000	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	550–600	558	390.29/cwt	380.00–392.00	2,178	7
Bulls	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	400–450	428	440.00/cwt	440.00–440.00	1,883	2
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	400–450	440	420.00/cwt	420.00–420.00	1,848	2
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2	400–450	443	357.50/cwt	357.50–357.50	1,584	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	450–500	494	349.91/cwt	345.00–360.00	1,729	3
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Broken Mouth	—	1,323	2,239.46/head	2,200.00–2,300.00	2,239	9
Bulls	Medium and Large 1	1000–1050	1,037	286.51/cwt	282.50–287.50	2,971	5
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	1000–1050	1,000	270.00/cwt	270.00–270.00	2,700	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	600–650	619	349.89/cwt	347.50–352.00	2,166	5
Heifers	Medium and Large 1	550–600	554	338.02/cwt	334.00–365.00	1,873	8
Steers	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	550–600	578	367.50/cwt	367.50–367.50	2,124	2
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,385	2,500.00/head	2,500.00–2,500.00	2,500	1
Bulls	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	550–600	575	330.00/cwt	330.00–330.00	1,898	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1	600–650	622	350.00/cwt	350.00–350.00	2,177	8
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,202	3,236.40/head	3,100.00–3,350.00	3,236	14
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,068	229.40/cwt	181.00–280.00	2,450	40
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	—	1,087	1,974.71/head	1,900.00–2,000.00	1,975	4
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,080	2,200.00/head	2,200.00–2,200.00	2,200	1
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,497	2,450.00/head	2,450.00–2,450.00	2,450	13
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,134	2,909.57/head	2,850.00–2,935.00	2,910	7
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	—	1,553	2,700.00/head	2,700.00–2,700.00	2,700	2
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	993	277.82/cwt	235.00–308.00	2,759	80
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,410	2,200.00/head	2,200.00–2,200.00	2,200	2
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,105	2,900.00/head	2,900.00–2,900.00	2,900	4
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	895	271.43/cwt	220.00–305.00	2,429	29
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	1,220	2,383.19/head	2,250.00–2,450.00	2,383	6
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	—	1,360	2,000.00/head	2,000.00–2,000.00	2,000	10
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	—	1,245	1,850.00/head	1,850.00–1,850.00	1,850	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,666	151.20/cwt	143.00–155.00	2,519	19
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	—	1,834	156.24/cwt	156.00–157.00	2,865	4
Cows	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	—	922	70.55/cwt	60.00–75.00	650	3
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,367	166.26/cwt	166.00–167.00	2,273	4
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,148	101.70/cwt	90.00–104.00	1,168	6
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,170	108.58/cwt	100.00–115.00	1,270	7
Dairy Cows	Boner 80-85%Light Weight	—	935	105.00/cwt	105.00–105.00	982	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Heavy Weight	—	2,140	139.00/cwt	139.00–139.00	2,975	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,185	155.85/cwt	150.00–160.00	1,847	50
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,190	167.50/cwt	167.50–167.50	1,993	3
Cows	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	—	928	112.59/cwt	110.00–115.00	1,045	2
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,347	158.85/cwt	154.50–165.00	2,140	89
Bulls	—	—	1,680	173.00/cwt	173.00–173.00	2,906	2
Cows	Lean 85-90%	—	1,010	125.00/cwt	125.00–125.00	1,263	1
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,602	167.00/cwt	167.00–167.00	2,675	7
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,537	162.01/cwt	157.00–166.00	2,490	24
Bulls	—Light Weight	—	1,208	160.00/cwt	160.00–160.00	1,933	2
Cows	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	—	1,398	142.95/cwt	127.50–154.00	1,998	49
Bulls	—	—	1,901	159.95/cwt	151.00–165.00	3,041	10
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,415	148.00/cwt	148.00–148.00	2,094	1
Cows	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	—	1,148	136.92/cwt	107.50–151.00	1,572	54
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,414	139.34/cwt	135.00–143.00	1,970	5
Cows	Boner 80-85%	—	1,330	118.54/cwt	114.00–121.00	1,577	11
Bulls	—	—	1,805	183.00/cwt	183.00–183.00	3,303	1
Bred Cows	Large 1	—	1,340	2,700.00/head	2,700.00–2,700.00	2,700	1
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,340	158.76/cwt	150.00–165.00	2,127	2
Cows	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	—	1,627	150.66/cwt	142.00–154.00	2,451	9
Bulls	—	—	2,070	186.00/cwt	186.00–186.00	3,850	1
Bulls	—Return to Feed	—	1,842	179.38/cwt	173.00–180.50	3,304	13
Bulls	—	—	2,130	173.00/cwt	173.00–173.00	3,685	1
Heifers	Medium 1Unweaned	500–550	510	345.00/cwt	345.00–345.00	1,760	2
Heifers	Medium 1	650–700	687	280.00/cwt	280.00–280.00	1,924	8
Bred Cows	Medium 1	—	900	1,800.00/head	1,800.00–1,800.00	1,800	1
Stock Cows	Medium 1	—	745	290.00/cwt	290.00–290.00	2,161	4
Bulls	Large 1-2	1150–1200	1,160	230.00/cwt	230.00–230.00	2,668	3
Bulls	Large 1	1100–1150	1,110	251.00/cwt	251.00–251.00	2,786	7
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Broken Mouth	—	1,325	2,000.00/head	2,000.00–2,000.00	2,000	2
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1-2Thin Fleshed	—	1,127	1,850.00/head	1,850.00–1,850.00	1,850	3
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1-2	—	950	219.18/cwt	195.00–250.00	2,082	7
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	—	1,085	210.00/cwt	210.00–210.00	2,279	3
Bred Cows	Medium and Large 1	—	1,230	2,650.00/head	2,650.00–2,650.00	2,650	3
Stock Cows	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	—	1,655	180.00/cwt	180.00–180.00	2,979	1
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	600–650	624	327.50/cwt	327.50–327.50	2,044	4
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	650–700	690	250.00/cwt	250.00–250.00	1,725	3
Steers	Medium and Large 1-2	500–550	510	404.29/cwt	400.00–412.50	2,062	3
Heifers	Medium and Large 2Unweaned	450–500	480	300.00/cwt	300.00–300.00	1,440	1
Heifers	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	400–450	433	374.74/cwt	355.00–410.00	1,623	4
Bulls	Medium and Large 1-2	950–1000	955	262.50/cwt	262.50–262.50	2,507	1

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 →