Sale reports / Montana / Public Auction Yards / 2020-12-02

Public Auction Yards

Name: Public Auction Yards livestock auction prices — 2020-12-02
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2020-12-02

Feeder Cattle · Slaughter Cattle · Replacement Cattle · Billings, Montana · Wed, Dec 2

● Final67 lots reportedUSDA AMS · slug 1774

← Nov 25Dec 2Dec 16 →

Feeder Cattle receipts

400 head

▼ 119 vs last sale 519▲ 15 vs year ago 385 · +3.9%

Slaughter Cattle receipts

955 head

▼ 53 vs last sale 1,008▲ 810 vs year ago 145 · +558.6%

Replacement Cattle receipts

399 head

▲ 117 vs last sale 282▼ 794 vs year ago 1,193 · −66.6%

Also sold hereRegular saleFri Oct 30, 2026

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Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week: Yearling steers and heifers were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Unweaned steer and heifer calves were too lightly tested to develop an accurate market trend however higher undertones were noticed. Quality this week was mostly average and offered in small packages. Demand this sale as mostly good despite a light offering of feeder cattle. Market activity was moderate to active. Weigh up cows sold on mostly mixed demand and heavy offerings. Demand started the day light to moderate, however demand improved drastically as the sale progressed ending the day mostly moderate to good. Packer buyers showed light demand for slaughter cows to start the sale, buying them mostly lower than last week, however packers became significantly more aggressive as the sale progressed. Slaughter cows sold mostly 1.00-4.00 higher on boning cows and uneven on lean cows with prices from 1.00 lower to 3.00 higher. Breaking cows sold generally steady, however packers opted to send most of these cows to slaughter instead of feed this sale. Feeding cows sold mostly steady to 2.00 higher with demand improving as the sale progressed. Cows and bulls offered buyers mostly below average weigh up conditions this sale. Many cows were pushing heavy amounts of fill, especially later in the day. Slaughter bulls sold mostly firm, however, much like cows prices, improved as the sale progressed. Two year old to young age cows sold on mostly moderate demand this sale. Quality was average. This class of cows sold sold generally steady.

Weight class — the figures below change to match

Weight classPick one — the panels below update

Heifers · summary 0–100 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

0–100 lb heifers averaged $134.79/cwt on 172 head.

Average price

$134.79

172 head · 663 lb average

Value per head Derived

$893

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

−$246

per head · Medium and Large 1 over Large 1

$35.36/cwt at this weight

vs the market

−12.45

vs MT average

Price by quality 0–100 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	613	139.23	854	144
Medium 1	710	122.00	866	9thin
Medium and Large 1-2	939	117.33	1,101	3thin
Medium and Large 2	863	111.00	958	3thin
Large 1-2	1,160	104.00	1,206	1thin
Large 1	1,058	103.88	1,099	12thin

One grade step is worth $35.36/cwt here — about −$246 a head. Across this sale the premium is widest at 0–100 lb. USDA reports each grade on its own line and never publishes the spread.

How it compared 0–100 lb

Same class and week · spot auction only

This sale172 hd

134.79

—

MT average3 barns · 1,142 hd

147.23

−12.45

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	1,811	75.39	1,365	49
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Average	1,649	61.54	1,015	22
Cows	Boner 80-85%	Low	1,392	54.92	765	213
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Low	1,165	45.77	533	317

Every lot

67 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. Grouped by class and set lightest first; USDA files them in sale-ring order.

Class	Weight	Grade / description	Avg wt	Price	Range	Per head	Head
Feeder Cattle · Steers11 lots · lightest first
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	421	194.00/cwt	188.00–202.00	817	9
Steers	—	Medium and Large 2Unweaned	476	150.00/cwt	150.00–150.00	714	5
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	487	178.24/cwt	178.00–180.00	868	8
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	503	172.00/cwt	172.00–172.00	865	3
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	529	165.22/cwt	157.00–174.00	874	8
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	581	140.88/cwt	138.00–147.00	819	8
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2Full	620	132.00/cwt	132.00–132.00	818	3
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2Unweaned	623	134.50/cwt	134.00–137.00	838	6
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	633	147.50/cwt	147.50–147.50	934	14
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	730	137.00/cwt	137.00–137.00	1,000	2
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	975	122.51/cwt	121.00–124.00	1,194	4
Feeder Cattle · Heifers19 lots · lightest first
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	397	166.00/cwt	166.00–166.00	659	5
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	406	150.00/cwt	150.00–150.00	609	4
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	438	153.28/cwt	151.00–154.00	671	8
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	475	149.58/cwt	149.00–150.50	711	16
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	517	144.50/cwt	144.50–144.50	747	27
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	519	142.80/cwt	137.00–146.50	741	34
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1Full	588	130.50/cwt	130.50–130.50	767	5
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	663	129.50/cwt	129.50–129.50	859	4
Heifers	—	Medium 1	710	122.00/cwt	122.00–122.00	866	9
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	750	129.50/cwt	129.50–129.50	971	4
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	824	127.94/cwt	124.00–130.00	1,054	15
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	860	118.00/cwt	118.00–118.00	1,015	1
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 2	863	111.00/cwt	111.00–111.00	958	3
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	929	123.50/cwt	123.50–123.50	1,147	4
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	962	119.00/cwt	119.00–119.00	1,145	18
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	978	117.00/cwt	117.00–117.00	1,144	2
Heifers	—	Large 1Fleshy	1,013	102.00/cwt	102.00–102.00	1,033	7
Heifers	—	Large 1	1,122	106.50/cwt	106.50–106.50	1,195	5
Heifers	—	Large 1-2	1,160	104.00/cwt	104.00–104.00	1,206	1
Feeder Cattle · Bulls4 lots · lightest first
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	415	199.00/cwt	199.00–199.00	826	2
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	548	144.00/cwt	144.00–144.00	789	5
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1Unweaned	582	143.00/cwt	143.00–143.00	832	3
Bulls	—	Large 1	1,268	87.00/cwt	87.00–87.00	1,103	2
Slaughter Cattle · Bulls6 lots · lightest first
Bulls	—	—Return to Feed	1,665	71.19/cwt	67.00–74.00	1,185	10
Bulls	—	—Return to Feed	1,815	78.43/cwt	75.00–81.00	1,424	10
Bulls	—	—	1,839	79.67/cwt	75.50–83.00	1,465	11
Bulls	—	—	1,840	69.26/cwt	60.00–74.00	1,274	13
Bulls	—	—Return to Feed	1,890	83.98/cwt	83.00–85.00	1,587	2
Bulls	—	—	2,003	84.34/cwt	84.00–84.50	1,689	3
Slaughter Cattle · Cows20 lots · lightest first
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	923	32.48/cwt	22.50–38.00	300	4
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	942	40.04/cwt	39.00–42.00	377	3
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,124	32.75/cwt	28.00–38.00	368	14
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,156	44.51/cwt	38.50–49.00	515	160
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,166	36.00/cwt	36.00–36.00	420	5
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,171	43.27/cwt	39.50–47.50	507	11
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,187	49.90/cwt	47.50–57.00	592	110
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,276	47.62/cwt	47.00–48.50	608	4
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,296	57.50/cwt	57.50–57.50	745	6
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	1,350	56.43/cwt	51.00–62.00	762	124
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	1,375	63.34/cwt	62.00–65.00	871	21
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	1,406	47.57/cwt	44.00–50.00	669	23
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%	1,470	62.00/cwt	62.00–62.00	911	1
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,502	46.80/cwt	42.00–50.50	703	20
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,516	52.24/cwt	49.00–54.00	792	22
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,518	63.75/cwt	63.75–63.75	968	3
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	1,534	57.25/cwt	55.00–60.00	878	5
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%	1,658	67.00/cwt	67.00–67.00	1,111	2
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	1,694	63.04/cwt	62.50–65.00	1,068	13
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%	1,810	52.00/cwt	52.00–52.00	941	1
Replacement Cattle · Stock Cows3 lots · lightest first
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1Thin Fleshed	935	47.67/cwt	44.00–51.00	446	5
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	942	77.99/cwt	62.00–90.50	735	159
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,079	63.24/cwt	51.00–77.00	682	83
Replacement Cattle · Bred Cows4 lots · lightest first
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1Thin Fleshed	1,121	525.00/cwt	525.00–525.00	5,885	9
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	1,203	661.53/cwt	660.00–675.00	7,958	32
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,244	1,050.00/cwt	1,050.00–1,050.00	13,062	7
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1-2	1,463	56.00/cwt	56.00–56.00	819	2

This sale against other markets

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 →

Public Auction Yards Livestock Cattle Auction - Billings, MT (Wed)

Wed Dec 2, 2020

USDA Livestock, Poultry & Grain Market News · Federal-State Market News Service, Billings, MT (LS-BL)

Feeder CattleReceipts 400Last week 519Year ago 385

Slaughter CattleReceipts 955Last week 1,008Year ago 145

Replacement CattleReceipts 399Last week 282Year ago 1,193

Feeder Cattle

As reported

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 2 · Unweaned$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	476	150.00	150.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1 · Unweaned$ per cwt · actual wt
8	—	487	178.00–180.00	178.24
8	—	529	157.00–174.00	165.22
14	—	633	147.50	147.50
9	—	421	188.00–202.00	194.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1-2 · Unweaned$ per cwt · actual wt
6	—	623	134.00–137.00	134.50
8	—	581	138.00–147.00	140.88

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	503	172.00	172.00
4	—	975	121.00–124.00	122.51
2	—	730	137.00	137.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1-2 · Full$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	620	132.00	132.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
4	—	750	129.50	129.50
27	—	517	144.50	144.50
4	—	406	150.00	150.00
15	—	824	124.00–130.00	127.94
18	—	962	119.00	119.00
4	—	929	123.50	123.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1 · Unweaned$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	397	166.00	166.00
8	—	438	151.00–154.00	153.28
34	—	519	137.00–146.50	142.80
16	—	475	149.00–150.50	149.58
4	—	663	129.50	129.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1 · Full$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	588	130.50	130.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	860	118.00	118.00
2	—	978	117.00	117.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	1,122	106.50	106.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 2$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	863	111.00	111.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium 1$ per cwt · actual wt
9	—	710	122.00	122.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Large 1 · Fleshy$ per cwt · actual wt
7	—	1,013	102.00	102.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	1,160	104.00	104.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Medium and Large 1 · Unweaned$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	582	143.00	143.00
5	—	548	144.00	144.00
2	—	415	199.00	199.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
2	—	1,268	87.00	87.00

Replacement Cattle

As reported

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
Young (2-4 yrs)	Open	83	—	1,079	51.00–77.00	63.24
(<2 yrs)	Open	159	—	942	62.00–90.50	77.99

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1 · Thin Fleshed$ per cwt · actual wt
Young (2-4 yrs)	Open	5	—	935	44.00–51.00	47.67

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1 · Broken Mouth$ per cwt · actual wt
Aged (>8 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	32	—	1,203	660.00–675.00	661.53

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	2	—	1,463	56.00	56.00

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
Young (2-4 yrs)	1st/2nd Stage (1-6 mo)	7	—	1,244	1,050.00	1,050.00

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1 · Thin Fleshed$ per cwt · actual wt
Aged (>8 yrs)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	9	—	1,121	525.00	525.00

Slaughter Cattle

As reported

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90% · Light Weight$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	942	39.00–42.00	40.04
4	—	923	22.50–38.00	32.48

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Boner 80-85% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
23	—	1,406	44.00–50.00	47.57
124	—	1,350	51.00–62.00	56.43
21	—	1,375	62.00–65.00	63.34

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Breaker 75-80%$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	1,470	62.00	62.00
2	—	1,658	67.00	67.00
1	—	1,810	52.00	52.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	1,166	36.00	36.00
160	—	1,156	38.50–49.00	44.51
6	—	1,296	57.50	57.50
110	—	1,187	47.50–57.00	49.90

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90%$ per cwt · actual wt
14	—	1,124	28.00–38.00	32.75
4	—	1,276	47.00–48.50	47.62
11	—	1,171	39.50–47.50	43.27

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Breaker 75-80% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
13	—	1,694	62.50–65.00	63.04
5	—	1,534	55.00–60.00	57.25

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Boner 80-85%$ per cwt · actual wt
22	—	1,516	49.00–54.00	52.24
3	—	1,518	63.75	63.75
20	—	1,502	42.00–50.50	46.80

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
10	—	1,665	67.00–74.00	71.19
10	—	1,815	75.00–81.00	78.43
2	—	1,890	83.00–85.00	83.98

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls$ per cwt · actual wt
13	—	1,840	60.00–74.00	69.26
3	—	2,003	84.00–84.50	84.34
11	—	1,839	75.50–83.00	79.67

Head, weight ranges, average weights and price ranges are exactly as USDA AMS filed them — nothing recomputed, nothing rounded — in USDA's own reporting structure. This is RaisedBeef's rendering of that data, not a copy of USDA's document.