Sale reports / Montana / Public Auction Yards / 2023-02-15

Public Auction Yards

Name: Public Auction Yards livestock auction prices — 2023-02-15
Creator: RaisedBeef
Published: 2023-02-15

Feeder Cattle · Slaughter Cattle · Replacement Cattle · Billings, Montana · Wed, Feb 15

● Final41 lots reportedUSDA AMS · slug 1774

← Feb 8Feb 15Feb 22 →

Feeder Cattle receipts

177 head

▼ 149 vs last sale 326▼ 313 vs year ago 490 · −63.9%

Slaughter Cattle receipts

70 head

▼ 315 vs last sale 385▼ 186 vs year ago 256 · −72.7%

Replacement Cattle receipts

56 head

▼ 3 vs last sale 59▼ 44 vs year ago 100 · −44.0%

Also sold hereRegular saleFri Oct 30, 2026

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Reporter comment USDA

As filed

Compared to last week: Receipts were light today due to cold weather seen today and snowy conditions seen yesterday. Feeder cattle were all too lightly tested to develop any market trend. Quality this sale was mostly plain. Most calves were offered in small packages or as singles. Demand for feeder cattle remains good, but quality hampered demand this sale. Market activity was slow to moderate. Weigh up cows sold on mostly good demand for light offerings. Packer buyers showed good demand for slaughter cows this sale. Cow quality was mostly plain to average. A large consignment of mini Herefords was seen this sale and packers showed mostly light demand for these lightweight offerings. Too few cows sold to establish a full market trend for slaughter or feeding cows, however steady to higher undertones were noticed on all offerings. Slaughter bulls were too lightly tested last week to develop any market trend. Young age cows suitable to feed or rebreed were too lightly tested to develop any market trend. A few heifers that lost calves have started to come to market. These offering sold at a discount open heifers and lowered the price of <2 year old stock cows.

Weight class — the figures below change to match

Weight classPick one — the panels below update

Steers · summary 0–100 lb

Weighted average of every reported lot

0–100 lb steers averaged $206.14/cwt on 53 head.

Average price

$206.14

53 head · 633 lb average

Value per head Derived

$1,304

Price × average weight ÷ 100

Grade differential Derived

−$144

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

$58.55/cwt at this weight

vs the market

+6.09

vs MT average

Price by quality 0–100 lb

Frame and muscle grade

Frame / muscle	Avg wt	$/cwt	$/head	Head
Medium and Large 1	563	230.01	1,295	27
Medium and Large 2	452	200.00	904	9thin
Medium and Large 1-2	839	171.46	1,439	17thin

One grade step is worth $58.55/cwt here — about −$144 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 sale53 hd

206.14

—

MT average3 barns · 1,414 hd

200.05

+6.09

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	1,056	90.91	960	15
Cows	Breaker 75-80%	Average	1,718	87.50	1,503	4thin
Cows	Boner 80-85%	Low	1,315	83.60	1,099	15
Cows	Lean 85-90%	Average	1,054	74.55	786	23

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)	Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	1,385	$1,273	2thin

Every lot

41 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 · Steers7 lots · lightest first
Steers	—	Medium and Large 2	391	210.00/cwt	210.00–210.00	821	5
Steers	—	Medium and Large 2	528	187.50/cwt	187.50–187.50	990	4
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	529	238.40/cwt	229.00–240.00	1,261	21
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1	682	200.66/cwt	200.00–204.00	1,369	6
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	689	186.41/cwt	183.00–189.00	1,284	7
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	926	163.00/cwt	163.00–163.00	1,509	6
Steers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	973	158.00/cwt	158.00–158.00	1,537	4
Feeder Cattle · Heifers5 lots · lightest first
Heifers	—	Small and Medium 2	317	90.00/cwt	90.00–90.00	285	7
Heifers	—	Small and Medium 2	426	90.00/cwt	90.00–90.00	383	9
Heifers	—	Medium 1	430	197.50/cwt	197.50–197.50	849	2
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2	600	169.00/cwt	169.00–169.00	1,014	2
Heifers	—	Medium and Large 1-2Fleshy	944	126.00/cwt	126.00–126.00	1,189	7
Feeder Cattle · Bulls8 lots · lightest first
Bulls	—	Medium 2	418	157.50/cwt	157.50–157.50	658	5
Bulls	—	Small and Medium 2	420	105.00/cwt	105.00–105.00	441	6
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1	485	217.50/cwt	217.50–217.50	1,055	1
Bulls	—	Medium 2	493	147.50/cwt	147.50–147.50	727	6
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1-2	510	175.00/cwt	175.00–175.00	893	3
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1	629	178.82/cwt	178.00–181.00	1,125	6
Bulls	—	Medium and Large 1-2	843	130.00/cwt	130.00–130.00	1,096	2
Bulls	—	Large 1	1,070	127.00/cwt	127.00–127.00	1,359	2
Feeder Cattle · Dairy Steers1 lot · lightest first
Dairy Steers	—	Large 3-4	818	50.00/cwt	50.00–50.00	409	4
Slaughter Cattle · Bulls3 lots · lightest first
Bulls	—	—Return to Feed	1,009	90.36/cwt	86.50–92.00	912	13
Bulls	—	—	1,305	86.00/cwt	86.00–86.00	1,122	1
Bulls	—	—	1,420	103.00/cwt	103.00–103.00	1,463	1
Slaughter Cattle · Cows9 lots · lightest first
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Light Weight	846	69.15/cwt	61.00–73.00	585	5
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%Light Weight	875	70.00/cwt	70.00–70.00	613	3
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,092	73.10/cwt	68.00–79.00	798	13
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%	1,159	82.76/cwt	82.00–83.00	959	4
Cows	—	Lean 85-90%Return to Feed	1,180	87.50/cwt	87.50–87.50	1,033	1
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,399	87.22/cwt	85.00–89.00	1,220	5
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,415	75.71/cwt	74.50–77.00	1,071	2
Cows	—	Boner 80-85%	1,455	91.30/cwt	91.25–91.50	1,328	5
Cows	—	Breaker 75-80%	1,718	87.50/cwt	87.50–87.50	1,503	4
Replacement Cattle · Bred Cows2 lots · lightest first
Bred Cows	—	Small and Medium 1-2	1,001	73.50/cwt	73.50–73.50	736	8
Bred Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,385	1,272.83/head	1,225.00–1,325.00	1,273	2
Replacement Cattle · Bred Heifers1 lot · lightest first
Bred Heifers	—	Small and Medium 1-2Non-Legible BANGS	743	70.00/cwt	70.00–70.00	520	7
Replacement Cattle · Stock Cows5 lots · lightest first
Stock Cows	—	Large 1	880	100.00/cwt	100.00–100.00	880	1
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1-2	974	117.75/cwt	103.00–131.00	1,147	5
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,052	123.59/cwt	118.00–136.00	1,300	12
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1	1,107	94.19/cwt	83.00–113.00	1,043	7
Stock Cows	—	Medium and Large 1Fleshy	1,267	113.80/cwt	113.75–114.00	1,442	14

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 Feb 15, 2023

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

Feeder CattleReceipts 177Last week 326Year ago 490

Slaughter CattleReceipts 70Last week 385Year ago 256

Replacement CattleReceipts 56Last week 59Year ago 100

Feeder Cattle

As reported

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
2	—	1,070	127.00	127.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	510	175.00	175.00
2	—	843	130.00	130.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Medium 2$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	418	157.50	157.50
6	—	493	147.50	147.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	485	217.50	217.50
6	—	629	178.00–181.00	178.82

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Small and Medium 2$ per cwt · actual wt
6	—	420	105.00	105.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
2	—	600	169.00	169.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium and Large 1-2 · Fleshy$ per cwt · actual wt
7	—	944	126.00	126.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Medium 1$ per cwt · actual wt
2	—	430	197.50	197.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Heifers — Small and Medium 2$ per cwt · actual wt
7	—	317	90.00	90.00
9	—	426	90.00	90.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Dairy Steers — Large 3-4$ per cwt · actual wt
4	—	818	50.00	50.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
7	—	689	183.00–189.00	186.41
4	—	973	158.00	158.00
6	—	926	163.00	163.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
6	—	682	200.00–204.00	200.66
21	—	529	229.00–240.00	238.40

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Steers — Medium and Large 2$ per cwt · actual wt
4	—	528	187.50	187.50
5	—	391	210.00	210.00

Replacement Cattle

As reported

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bred Cows — Small and Medium 1-2$ per cwt · actual wt
Young/Middle Aged (2-8 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	8	—	1,001	73.50	73.50

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bred Cows — Medium and Large 1$ per head · actual wt
Middle Aged/Aged (>5 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	2	—	1,385	1,225.00–1,325.00	1,272.83

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bred Heifers — Small and Medium 1-2 · Non-Legible BANGS$ per cwt · actual wt
(<2 yrs)	3rd Stage (7-9 mo)	7	—	743	70.00	70.00

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1 · Fleshy$ per cwt · actual wt
(<2 yrs)	Open	14	—	1,267	113.75–114.00	113.80

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Stock Cows — Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
(<2 yrs)	Open	1	—	880	100.00	100.00

Age	Stage	Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Stock Cows — Medium and Large 1$ per cwt · actual wt
(<2 yrs)	Open	12	—	1,052	118.00–136.00	123.59
Young (2-4 yrs)	Open	7	—	1,107	83.00–113.00	94.19

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	5	—	974	103.00–131.00	117.75

Slaughter Cattle

As reported

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls — Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
13	—	1,009	86.50–92.00	90.36

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Bulls$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	1,420	103.00	103.00
1	—	1,305	86.00	86.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Boner 80-85% · Light Weight$ per cwt · actual wt
3	—	875	70.00	70.00

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90% · Return to Feed$ per cwt · actual wt
1	—	1,180	87.50	87.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Boner 80-85%$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	1,455	91.25–91.50	91.30
2	—	1,415	74.50–77.00	75.71
5	—	1,399	85.00–89.00	87.22

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Breaker 75-80%$ per cwt · actual wt
4	—	1,718	87.50	87.50

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90%$ per cwt · actual wt
13	—	1,092	68.00–79.00	73.10
4	—	1,159	82.00–83.00	82.76

Head	Wt range	Avg wt	Price range	Avg price
Cows — Lean 85-90% · Light Weight$ per cwt · actual wt
5	—	846	61.00–73.00	69.15

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.