Compared to last week: Steer calves were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, steady to higher undertones were noticed. Heifers over 650 lbs offered the best test this week and these offerings sold steady to 3.00 higher. All other weights of heifers were too lightly tested last week to develop an accurate market trend, however steady to higher undertones were noticed. Quality this week was mixed from plain to very attractive. Demand for feeder cattle was mostly moderate to good. The best demand continues to be for grass cattle as buyers purchased cattle up to 725 lbs to return to grass. The snow storm seen early in the week provided grass cattle buyers some reassurance that there will be some grass to start the turnout season. Several long strings, with multiple loads, of high quality offerings were seen this week. Heifer quality continues to be much more attractive compared to steer quality. Many sets of heifers which were slated to keep as replacements, but are being offered due to drought conditions. CME positions traded slightly higher this week. The August feeder cattle contract closed Thursday at 174.35, 0.80 higher than last week. The April closed Thursday at 158.20, 1.65 higher; the May contract closed Thursday at 161.775, 2.40 higher. Market activity this week was mostly moderate to active. Weigh up cows sold on mostly good demand for very light offerings. Slaughter demand was mostly good this week. A winter storm has packers short cattle as markets and road conditions were impacted from Central Montana to Minnesota. Feeding cow buyers continue to show very good demand for thin, lower dressing cows, as they look for cows which will gain quickly when put on feed. The cow offering was too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend, however higher undertones were noticed on both feeding and slaughter cows. Slaughter bulls sold mostly steady to 3.00 higher in a narrow comparison. Weigh conditions were mostly average to below average for buyers this week. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold steady to weak. These offerings were met moderate demand this week.
| Head | Wt range | Avg wt | Price range | Avg price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heifers — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 16 | — | 684 | 149.50–154.00 | 152.13 |
| 41 | — | 520 | 167.00–174.50 | 171.01 |
| 19 | — | 487 | 172.00–175.50 | 173.85 |
| 8 | — | 585 | 158.00–165.00 | 163.28 |
| 20 | — | 360 | 179.00 | 179.00 |
| 6 | — | 805 | 135.00–136.00 | 135.67 |
| 40 | — | 625 | 148.00–166.00 | 159.22 |
| 14 | — | 710 | 140.00–146.00 | 141.72 |
| Heifers — Medium and Large 2$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 5 | — | 664 | 135.00 | 135.00 |
| 11 | — | 584 | 137.50–150.00 | 144.34 |
| 11 | — | 432 | 162.50–165.00 | 164.13 |
| Heifers — Medium and Large 1 · Replacement$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 30 | — | 663 | 169.00 | 169.00 |
| 107 | — | 794 | 149.50 | 149.50 |
| Heifers — Medium 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 4 | — | 470 | 179.00 | 179.00 |
| 15 | — | 409 | 161.00 | 161.00 |
| Heifers — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 120 | — | 618 | 169.00–173.50 | 171.95 |
| 27 | — | 374 | 186.50 | 186.50 |
| 226 | — | 536 | 177.00–185.75 | 184.85 |
| 13 | — | 443 | 187.00 | 187.00 |
| 178 | — | 467 | 188.50–194.50 | 190.54 |
| 129 | — | 758 | 144.00–149.00 | 147.40 |
| 29 | — | 831 | 136.00–136.50 | 136.09 |
| 389 | — | 575 | 171.50–179.50 | 175.78 |
| 150 | — | 714 | 152.00–157.00 | 154.10 |
| 8 | — | 864 | 139.00 | 139.00 |
| 145 | — | 676 | 161.00–169.00 | 166.90 |
| Heifers — Medium and Large 1 · Fleshy$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 6 | — | 862 | 137.00 | 137.00 |
| 22 | — | 811 | 129.50–142.00 | 135.71 |
| 9 | — | 737 | 145.00–146.00 | 145.45 |
| 5 | — | 770 | 142.00 | 142.00 |
| 129 | — | 641 | 158.50–162.50 | 159.05 |
| 18 | — | 560 | 162.00 | 162.00 |
| 18 | — | 904 | 125.00 | 125.00 |
| 10 | — | 652 | 147.00 | 147.00 |
| Heifers — Medium 1 · Fleshy$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 22 | — | 679 | 137.00–139.00 | 138.63 |
| 4 | — | 866 | 122.00 | 122.00 |
| Heifers — Medium and Large 1 · Fancy$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 799 | — | 613 | 179.00 | 179.00 |
| Steers — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 64 | — | 524 | 205.00–214.50 | 208.11 |
| 27 | — | 455 | 206.00 | 206.00 |
| 35 | — | 615 | 180.00–189.00 | 185.60 |
| 17 | — | 913 | 143.50 | 143.50 |
| 25 | — | 819 | 151.00–154.00 | 151.61 |
| 69 | — | 685 | 175.50–186.00 | 177.71 |
| 128 | — | 583 | 195.50–200.00 | 196.20 |
| 14 | — | 420 | 221.00–226.00 | 221.75 |
| 10 | — | 706 | 170.00 | 170.00 |
| Steers — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 8 | — | 674 | 171.00 | 171.00 |
| 19 | — | 370 | 214.00 | 214.00 |
| 13 | — | 420 | 205.50 | 205.50 |
| 26 | — | 564 | 173.00–185.00 | 178.16 |
| 4 | — | 507 | 180.00–191.00 | 182.74 |
| 8 | — | 614 | 175.00 | 175.00 |
| 6 | — | 731 | 157.00 | 157.00 |
| Steers — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 10 | — | 841 | 146.00 | 146.00 |
| 5 | — | 737 | 158.00 | 158.00 |
| Steers — Medium and Large 1 · Full$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 5 | — | 630 | 176.00 | 176.00 |
| Steers — Medium and Large 1 · Thin Fleshed$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 33 | — | 521 | 216.00–217.50 | 216.42 |
| 77 | — | 665 | 191.00 | 191.00 |
| 38 | — | 454 | 230.50 | 230.50 |
| Steers — Medium and Large 2$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 15 | — | 369 | 175.00–180.00 | 178.95 |
| 12 | — | 548 | 169.00 | 169.00 |
| Bulls — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 1 | — | 95 | 175.00 | 175.00 |
| Bulls — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 1 | — | 1,010 | 122.00 | 122.00 |
| 4 | — | 1,120 | 108.00 | 108.00 |
| 7 | — | 1,177 | 104.00–111.00 | 107.01 |
| Bulls — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 2 | — | 705 | 138.00 | 138.00 |
| 3 | — | 943 | 122.00 | 122.00 |
| 1 | — | 90 | 250.00 | 250.00 |
| Head | Wt range | Avg wt | Price range | Avg price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cows — Boner 80-85% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 41 | — | 1,394 | 79.00–83.50 | 81.95 |
| 5 | — | 1,437 | 78.00–79.00 | 78.79 |
| Cows — Lean 85-90% · Light Weight$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 2 | — | 935 | 64.00–76.00 | 70.10 |
| Cows — Lean 85-90% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 12 | — | 1,165 | 78.00–85.00 | 82.00 |
| 5 | — | 1,122 | 77.00–78.50 | 78.11 |
| Cows — Lean 85-90%$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 24 | — | 1,189 | 65.00–78.50 | 75.54 |
| 12 | — | 1,205 | 77.00–83.00 | 80.28 |
| 3 | — | 1,128 | 55.00–56.00 | 55.31 |
| Cows — Breaker 75-80%$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 6 | — | 1,671 | 81.00–82.75 | 81.82 |
| Cows — Boner 80-85%$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 2 | — | 1,483 | 76.00–77.00 | 76.53 |
| 40 | — | 1,391 | 78.00–85.50 | 81.31 |
| Bulls$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 12 | — | 1,632 | 78.00–98.00 | 91.28 |
| 5 | — | 2,389 | 112.00–117.00 | 114.56 |
| 5 | — | 1,846 | 102.00–107.00 | 104.93 |
| Bulls — Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||
| 10 | — | 1,357 | 95.00–102.50 | 100.83 |
| 1 | — | 1,340 | 85.00 | 85.00 |
| Age | Stage | Head | Wt range | Avg wt | Price range | Avg price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| Middle Aged (5-8 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 4 | — | 1,428 | 1,200.00 | 1,200.00 |
| Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 14 | — | 1,480 | 1,160.00–1,185.00 | 1,175.99 |
| Young (2-4 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 31 | — | 1,244 | 1,400.00–1,575.00 | 1,471.64 |
| Bred Cows — Medium 1 · Thin Fleshed$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| Young (2-4 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 10 | — | 1,061 | 950.00 | 950.00 |
| Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1 · Thin Fleshed$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| Middle Aged (5-8 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 41 | — | 1,338 | 1,150.00–1,175.00 | 1,172.23 |
| Young (2-4 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 125 | — | 1,279 | 1,200.00–1,250.00 | 1,236.54 |
| Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1 · Broken Mouth$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| Aged (>8 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 1 | — | 1,605 | 1,185.00 | 1,185.00 |
| Bred Cows — Medium 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| Young (2-4 yrs) | 3rd Stage (7-9 mo) | 28 | — | 1,089 | 1,075.00–1,085.00 | 1,081.64 |
| Stock Cows — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| (<2 yrs) | Open | 1 | — | 1,290 | 84.00 | 84.00 |
| Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| (<2 yrs) | Open | 73 | — | 1,041 | 93.00–119.00 | 107.07 |
| Young (2-4 yrs) | Open | 47 | — | 1,047 | 76.00–100.00 | 88.96 |
| Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| (<2 yrs) | Open | 1 | — | 1,125 | 84.00 | 84.00 |
| Young (2-4 yrs) | Open | 2 | — | 1,003 | 74.00–77.00 | 75.45 |
| Stock Cows — Medium 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt | ||||||
| (<2 yrs) | Open | 1 | — | 790 | 80.00 | 80.00 |