Sale reports / Montana / Public Auction Yards / 2021-03-24

Public Auction Yards

Name: Public Auction Yards livestock auction prices — 2021-03-24
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2021-03-24

Feeder Cattle · Slaughter Cattle · Replacement Cattle · Billings, Montana · Wed, Mar 24

● Final71 lots reportedUSDA AMS · slug 1774

← Mar 17Mar 24Mar 31 →

Feeder Cattle receipts

446 head

▲ 142 vs last sale 304▲ 281 vs year ago 165 · +170.3%

Slaughter Cattle receipts

254 head

▲ 2 vs last sale 252▼ 49 vs year ago 303 · −16.2%

Replacement Cattle receipts

123 head

▲ 3 vs last sale 120▼ 320 vs year ago 443 · −72.2%

Also sold hereRegular saleFri Oct 30, 2026

View

Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week: Feeder cattle were too lightly tested both this week and last to develop an accurate market trend, however steers and heifers sold with steady to weak undertones. Quality this week was mostly plain to average and overall not as attractive as last week. Demand was light to moderate for light offerings. Limited offerings caused limited demand as some buyers were not willing to start loads as this is the last sale in Billings for the week. CME positions traded higher today as packers paid higher money for fat cattle. Market activity was slow to moderate. Weigh up cows sold on mostly good to very good demand. Feeding buyers were aggressive as they bid against packers over offerings. Packers showed good demand for both slaughter and feeding cows this week. Muddy conditions and some flooding have been reported in locations that saw heavy snow last week. This continues to keep cow supplies tight. Slaughter cows sold 1.00-2.00 higher on breaking and boning cows lean cows sold mostly 2.00-4.00 higher. Feeding cows sold mostly 2.00-4.00 higher on all classes. Slaughter bulls were too lightly tested last week to develop an accurate market trend, however higher undertones were noticed. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed sold steady firm. Quality was mostly average this week.

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 $145.76/cwt on 195 head.

Average price

$145.76

195 head · 609 lb average

Value per head Derived

$888

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

−$168

per head · Medium and Large 1-2 over Medium and Large 1

$3.71/cwt at this weight

vs the market

+1.17

vs MT average

Price by quality 0–100 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1-2	503	148.82	748	34
Medium and Large 1	632	145.11	917	161

One grade step is worth $3.71/cwt here — about −$168 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 sale195 hd

145.76

—

MT average3 barns · 603 hd

144.58

+1.17

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	—	High	1,899	84.85	1,612	33
Cows	Boner 80-85%	High	1,422	63.12	897	81
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Average	1,593	62.68	999	21
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Average	1,196	61.70	738	78

Every lot

71 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 · Steers16 lots · lightest first
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	442	191.43/cwt	190.00–195.00	846	12
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	472	172.11/cwt	168.00–175.00	812	28
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	482	178.33/cwt	178.00–179.00	860	3
Steers	—	Medium 1	495	174.00/cwt	174.00–174.00	861	3
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	519	174.65/cwt	174.00–176.00	906	27
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	532	172.32/cwt	169.00–173.00	917	12
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	560	157.00/cwt	157.00–157.00	879	1
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	567	164.72/cwt	163.00–165.00	934	7
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	621	162.07/cwt	162.00–162.50	1,006	15
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	645	149.00/cwt	149.00–149.00	961	5
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	680	148.00/cwt	148.00–148.00	1,006	3
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	715	143.99/cwt	142.50–146.00	1,030	29
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	830	131.00/cwt	131.00–131.00	1,087	5
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	883	132.00/cwt	132.00–132.00	1,166	4
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	928	128.00/cwt	128.00–128.00	1,188	2
Steers	—	Large 1	1,104	120.00/cwt	120.00–120.00	1,325	4
Feeder Cattle · Heifers12 lots · lightest first
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	388	167.50/cwt	167.50–167.50	650	4
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	427	157.20/cwt	155.00–161.00	671	19
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	457	155.00/cwt	155.00–155.00	708	5
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	479	166.02/cwt	163.00–168.00	795	22
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	517	163.15/cwt	157.00–167.00	843	18
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	580	146.91/cwt	146.50–149.00	852	6
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	628	143.90/cwt	139.00–147.00	904	45
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	635	136.00/cwt	136.00–136.00	864	2
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	660	138.65/cwt	136.00–139.00	915	9
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	679	128.26/cwt	128.00–129.00	871	8
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	706	132.50/cwt	132.50–132.50	935	7
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1	754	131.43/cwt	129.00–131.50	991	50
Feeder Cattle · Bulls10 lots · lightest first
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1	369	195.00/cwt	195.00–195.00	720	5
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 2	373	135.00/cwt	135.00–135.00	504	4
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1	445	177.50/cwt	177.50–177.50	790	1
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1-2	473	155.00/cwt	155.00–155.00	733	11
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1-2	556	141.00/cwt	141.00–141.00	784	6
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1	617	144.98/cwt	143.00–147.00	895	6
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1	685	138.00/cwt	138.00–138.00	945	1
Bulls	—	Large 1	1,054	108.00/cwt	108.00–108.00	1,138	4
Bulls	—	Large 1	1,140	95.00/cwt	95.00–95.00	1,083	3
Bulls	—	Large 1	1,150	95.00/cwt	95.00–95.00	1,093	1
Slaughter Cattle · Bulls6 lots · lightest first
Bulls	—	—Light Weight	1,285	70.00/cwt	70.00–70.00	900	1
Bulls	—	—Light Weight	1,370	83.00/cwt	83.00–83.00	1,137	1
Bulls	—	—	1,799	75.65/cwt	72.00–78.00	1,361	5
Bulls	—	—	1,894	85.21/cwt	82.00–88.50	1,614	18
Bulls	—	—	2,059	91.81/cwt	89.00–96.00	1,890	7
Bulls	—	—Heavy Weight	2,525	92.50/cwt	92.50–92.50	2,336	1
Slaughter Cattle · Cows19 lots · lightest first
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	970	45.00/cwt	45.00–45.00	437	1
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	990	55.00/cwt	55.00–55.00	545	1
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	998	65.00/cwt	65.00–65.00	649	2
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,038	51.49/cwt	51.00–52.00	534	2
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,155	60.95/cwt	53.00–63.00	704	19
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,178	68.68/cwt	68.00–69.50	809	2
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,220	63.68/cwt	63.00–66.00	777	29
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,248	64.46/cwt	63.50–65.00	804	11
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,256	57.12/cwt	54.00–62.00	717	11
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,355	68.50/cwt	68.50–68.50	928	2
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	1,382	61.36/cwt	60.00–62.50	848	14
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,384	64.48/cwt	63.50–66.50	892	16
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	1,399	64.49/cwt	63.00–66.25	902	26
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%	1,479	63.75/cwt	63.00–65.00	943	7
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,500	60.96/cwt	55.00–62.50	914	22
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%Return to Feed	1,570	67.00/cwt	67.00–67.00	1,052	1
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%	1,575	60.01/cwt	59.00–61.00	945	2
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	1,605	64.69/cwt	64.50–65.00	1,038	6
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%Return to Feed	1,721	60.31/cwt	57.00–62.00	1,038	6
Replacement Cattle · Bred Cows4 lots · lightest first
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,133	1,250.00/cwt	1,250.00–1,250.00	14,163	4
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,195	1,100.00/cwt	1,100.00–1,100.00	13,145	2
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,396	1,228.22/cwt	1,200.00–1,275.00	17,146	21
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1Broken Mouth	1,430	975.00/cwt	975.00–975.00	13,943	2
Replacement Cattle · Stock Cows4 lots · lightest first
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,026	91.28/cwt	80.00–110.00	937	35
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1-2	1,061	82.83/cwt	78.00–84.00	879	9
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,128	73.05/cwt	62.00–84.00	824	21
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,172	71.00/cwt	71.00–71.00	832	6

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 Mar 24, 2021

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

Feeder CattleReceipts 446Last week 304Year ago 165

Slaughter CattleReceipts 254Last week 252Year ago 303

Replacement CattleReceipts 123Last week 120Year ago 443

Slaughter Cattle

As reported

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls$ per cwt · actual wt
7	—	2,059	89.00–96.00	91.81
18	—	1,894	82.00–88.50	85.21
5	—	1,799	72.00–78.00	75.65

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Heavy Weight$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	2,525	92.50	92.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Light Weight$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	1,370	83.00	83.00
1	—	1,285	70.00	70.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Boner 80-85%$ per cwt · actual wt
2	—	1,355	68.50	68.50
16	—	1,384	63.50–66.50	64.48
22	—	1,500	55.00–62.50	60.96

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Boner 80-85% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
26	—	1,399	63.00–66.25	64.49
1	—	1,570	67.00	67.00
14	—	1,382	60.00–62.50	61.36

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
29	—	1,220	63.00–66.00	63.68
19	—	1,155	53.00–63.00	60.95
2	—	1,178	68.00–69.50	68.68

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Breaker 75-80%$ per cwt · actual wt
7	—	1,479	63.00–65.00	63.75
2	—	1,575	59.00–61.00	60.01

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90%$ per cwt · actual wt
11	—	1,256	54.00–62.00	57.12
11	—	1,248	63.50–65.00	64.46
2	—	1,038	51.00–52.00	51.49

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90% · Light Weight$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	990	55.00	55.00
2	—	998	65.00	65.00
1	—	970	45.00	45.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Breaker 75-80% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
6	—	1,605	64.50–65.00	64.69
6	—	1,721	57.00–62.00	60.31

Feeder Cattle

As reported

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
9	—	660	136.00–139.00	138.65
4	—	388	167.50	167.50
50	—	754	129.00–131.50	131.43
7	—	706	132.50	132.50
45	—	628	139.00–147.00	143.90
6	—	580	146.50–149.00	146.91
18	—	517	157.00–167.00	163.15
22	—	479	163.00–168.00	166.02

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	457	155.00	155.00
2	—	635	136.00	136.00
19	—	427	155.00–161.00	157.20
8	—	679	128.00–129.00	128.26

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
29	—	715	142.50–146.00	143.99
15	—	621	162.00–162.50	162.07
3	—	482	178.00–179.00	178.33
3	—	680	148.00	148.00
5	—	830	131.00	131.00
12	—	442	190.00–195.00	191.43
7	—	567	163.00–165.00	164.72
2	—	928	128.00	128.00
4	—	883	132.00	132.00
27	—	519	174.00–176.00	174.65

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium 1$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	495	174.00	174.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
4	—	1,104	120.00	120.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
12	—	532	169.00–173.00	172.32
1	—	560	157.00	157.00
28	—	472	168.00–175.00	172.11
5	—	645	149.00	149.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	1,150	95.00	95.00
4	—	1,054	108.00	108.00
3	—	1,140	95.00	95.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Medium and Large 2$ per cwt · actual wt
4	—	373	135.00	135.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	685	138.00	138.00
6	—	617	143.00–147.00	144.98
1	—	445	177.50	177.50
5	—	369	195.00	195.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
6	—	556	141.00	141.00
11	—	473	155.00	155.00

Replacement Cattle

As reported

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)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	2	—	1,430	975.00	975.00

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)	2nd Stage (4-6 mo)	2	—	1,195	1,100.00	1,100.00
Young (2-4 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	4	—	1,133	1,250.00	1,250.00
Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	21	—	1,396	1,200.00–1,275.00	1,228.22

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
(<2 yrs)	Open	9	—	1,061	78.00–84.00	82.83

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
(<2 yrs)	Open	35	—	1,026	80.00–110.00	91.28
Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	Open	6	—	1,172	71.00	71.00
Young (2-4 yrs)	Open	21	—	1,128	62.00–84.00	73.05

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.