Cow prices

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So was that your cows selling?
They were mine until I sold em to my neigh or last year. He calved em out and sold the calves. The calves brought 750 each one top of the 3 cows! He did well with em. He's going a different direction now.
I watched a couple minutes of that while a few calves sold...thought maybe you'd bring something home
Pics are coming in the bottle calf thread.
Did I read that screen right?? 2980# for 1 animal?? I thought I had big cows!
Yep!
1 very large farm animal....
 
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We see quite a few bulls in the 22-2600 weight range here when they get sold off farms. Bulls here are bringing 1.00-1.20 also. That one in the video was fat... YEP great return on fat bulls now...
Those cows were in very good condition... They are doing the same here, nice ones are in the .90-1.05 range.... we got .95 for a 1200 lb cow 2 weeks ago that was in good flesh. 1.01 for an 800 lb heifer that had raised a calf too young and was open so on feed for about 45 days and she rounded up real good and brought decent money for what she was.... and in the .75-.80 range for several older kill cows that were not near as nice a condition... but were open and leaving....
 
Bought 2 cows today. They are 1200 lb black cows bred 7 & 8 months. They cost $1425. That is about my top bid on old broken mouth cows. But they mouth them and called these 2 to be 3-5 years old. They are young enough that they may not get on the truck with the old cows. Young cows for old cow price. No bred cow buyers today. Everything else went to kill.
What are you thinking these cows will be worth in August?
 
What are you thinking these cows will be worth in August?
I said something about cows being $1.90 on the rail again to a kill buyer. He replied no problem doing that this year. We branded them today. I said something to B about them being young cow. He said we will see what their calves look like. Good big calves they might get to stay. Average or less calves and they will get on the truck with the old cows.
 
Last scheduled winter cow sale was today. Sickly or dairy X cows were about 85 cents. Most of the remainder was $1 and up. Some fleshy Hereford heifers bred Hereford almost topped the sale at U$S 1,850.

I bought some heavy bred but need better mineral cows for U$S 1.01. I project a return to labor and management of U$S 187/acre.
 
Shipped 20 lighter weight steers Friday.... single 400 lbs didn't match was $251.00. Another single weighed 430 and he had looked a little rough and we wormed him but was a good steer overall... brownish instead of the "required black".... we ran him from 1.30 to 1.87 and let him go for that..... they would have stolen it... 7 @495 --2.55 .... 3@ 370-- 2.55..... 5 @ 413 .... 2.59.... 3 @560 lbs 1.97....
We left to go to a bull sale and came back and the 3 nutty heifers had sold ... 2@510 lbs were 1.51 and the other they "stole".... 475lbs. and a better heifer they said would go in the "yard graded pen" but didn't...she just did not match the other 2.... 1.20... We would have brought her back and dealt with her going over gates every time she got crowded in the barn and sold at the other place we take "odd balls" as we always do better there but she was being stupid in the barn and we just said ship her... too late now... BUT that is why we always stay when our animals are sold... this yard has gotten worse about knocking things off to buyers for cheap prices if they can get away with it and there isn't alot of bidding...
The good steers still sell good here.. but it has become a buying station more for the owners than the good "sale barn" it used to be. If we hadn't have been there that other single steer would have gone for 1.30.... started a couple of the others back at 1.80 and I figured we were going to get hurt but there were a couple of guys that wanted the smaller ones and the group of 7 went to someone who knew they were ours and wanted them...

Still prices were a little off on the 550 wts from 2 weeks ago... glad we sold those others then.

Had one "lot" of 60 that would weigh at 830-860 ... weigh on the farm with 3% shrink... all black.. and the guy bid them in at 187.85..... there were 3 bidding on them... owner wanted 190.....
What does everyone think this fall will be like??? One friend that runs 50-60 or so out to pasture and has a guy that normally buys them, offered him 2.15 for them this fall... 850 wt average...guaranteed now... and the friend turned him down... I think he is nuts but I haven't looked at the futures on those weights...
 
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What does everyone think this fall will be like??? One friend that runs 50-60 or so out to pasture and has a guy that normally buys them, offered him 2.15 for them this fall... 850 wt average...guaranteed now... and the friend turned him down... I think he is nuts but I haven't looked at the futures on those weights...
You can do LRP on those 850 wt for fall at around that $2.15.
 
So, if he does the LRP for the 2.15, and the going price is 2.20, he would have to pay for the ins costs... but if they bring less, then he would get compensation for them right? Does it matter if he sells privately? I still have some trouble wrapping my head around it... I know, that seems dumb...I can sometimes be dense.... I just would have taken it as he will be making a profit over what he will have in them.... plus this guy buys them most every year for the last 8-10 years... so to me it seems a smart move to lock it in with a trusted buyer... no commissions, no shrink, nothing like that.. they load them, go weigh them, and he gets paid....
 
If you were comfortable that the buyers offer was a legit offer I would not buy an LRP for 2.15. The only plus side to the LRP would be that if he can sell them for more he is free to do that. It actually doesn't matter who he sells to or what he sells for. It's a guarantee at a certain price at a certain day.
But an LRP isn't free either.
 
So, if he does the LRP for the 2.15, and the going price is 2.20, he would have to pay for the ins costs... but if they bring less, then he would get compensation for them right? Does it matter if he sells privately? I still have some trouble wrapping my head around it... I know, that seems dumb...I can sometimes be dense.... I just would have taken it as he will be making a profit over what he will have in them.... plus this guy buys them most every year for the last 8-10 years... so to me it seems a smart move to lock it in with a trusted buyer... no commissions, no shrink, nothing like that.. they load them, go weigh them, and he gets paid....
LRP has nothing to do with his cattle. It is an insurance on the nation wide market. Has nothing to do with what his cattle bring or how he sells them. If you think that the over all market is going to trend down it is probably a good bet.
The quote I got on Friday said their expected value of 850 lb steers is $218.91 on October 23. There is 10 levels that you can buy. The low is $199.91 the cost of that was listed at $12 a head. The high was $217.91. The cost at that level was listed $49 a head. The closer you insure to their expected value the higher the cost.
 
LRP has nothing to do with his cattle. It is an insurance on the nation wide market. Has nothing to do with what his cattle bring or how he sells them. If you think that the over all market is going to trend down it is probably a good bet.
The quote I got on Friday said their expected value of 850 lb steers is $218.91 on October 23. There is 10 levels that you can buy. The low is $199.91 the cost of that was listed at $12 a head. The high was $217.91. The cost at that level was listed $49 a head. The closer you insure to their expected value the higher the cost.
So would you buy LRP or not? I would sign a contract for the 2.15 and be happy. But $49 is .06 a lb so it would lower the price to 2.09 if you sold for 2.15.
 
So would you buy LRP or not? I would sign a contract for the 2.15 and be happy. But $49 is .06 a lb so it would lower the price to 2.09 if you sold for 2.15.
I sure wouldn't pass the contract. I would make sure that the contract was solid and I would sell. Also the LRP value is nation wide so how does your local market compare to the nation wide market. That would be a consideration for me. A forward contract is a world of difference from LRP. To me LRP is a tool to use when you are worried about the market going south. I think it is also useful not to buy it but to look at the projected value. Where do the "experts" think the market is going. Minus the contract offer I might consider the lower end LRP. That is $12 a head to say the market is still essentially at $2 ($199.91)for 850 lb steers. I get the offers via email everyday M-F. I don't read them everyday but often enough to warch for trends. The way it is now the expected value has been growing steadily. If it were headed the other way I might jump on it.
Back in 2015 I forward contracted a semi load of bred heifers in June. I got more for them than I got in 2014. In July or August the market dropped like a rock. I still got the contract price and I was very glad I had contracted them.
 
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I sure wouldn't. I would make sure that the contract was solid and I would sell. Also the LRP value is nation wide so how does your local market compare to the nation wide market. That would be a consideration for me. A forward contract is a world of difference from LRP. To me LRP is a tool to use when you are worried about the market going south. I think it is also useful not to buy it but to look at the projected value. Where do the "experts" think the market is going. Minus the contract offer I might consider the lower end LRP. That is $12 a head to say the market is still essentially at $2 ($199.91)for 850 lb steers. I get the offers via email everyday M-F. I don't read them everyday but often enough to warch for trends. The way it is now the expected value has been growing steadily. If it were headed the other way I might jump on it.
Back in 2015 I forward contracted a semi load of bred heifers in June. I got more for them than I got in 2014. In July or August the market dropped like a rock. I still got the contract price and I was very glad I had contracted them.
You bring up a great point. A load of 850's here is probably worth .10-.15 less here than the best areas.
 
Thanks, @Dave ... Yes I realize it is not for "his cattle" specifically, but based on the nationwide price. I wasn't sure about the selling end... thinking maybe they had to be sold at a recognized place... but then, that's a dumb thought on my part... Sometimes I can wrap my head around a concept... and sometimes it just escapes my common sense. Your explanation made alot more sense to me....
My son is good friend's with this guy... and the guy that offered him the 2.15 has always been a good trusted buyer.... so i would think the contract was very good...
I would have made the deal and been satisfied with a guaranteed price down the road... if it tanks he will really lose out... Like @kenny thomas .... sign it and be happy... trying to wring out the POSSIBILITY of more sometimes is greedy. Yes, we all want to top the sale so to speak... but making a decent amount is sometimes better than chasing the last penny...
Another good point kenny made about the location of the animals vs the sale price... yes, here we often see a bit of a discount due to the trucking of animals to more distant feedout lots...
Another reason to have made the agreement... especially with no commission costs and no drift loss...
Oh well, we shall see..
@Dave, how do you get on a list like you mentioned about getting daily updates on things like that? I go on DVAuction often to check up on prices and all...
 
@Dave, how do you get on a list like you mentioned about getting daily updates on things like that? I go on DVAuction often to check up on prices and all...
I man I know advertises in the Oregon cattlemens' monthly publication. He sells both LRP and PRF (drought insurance). He is an agent for CKP insurance. I believe they are based out of Florida. Should be able to look them up online and find a local agent.
 
Thanks, @Dave ... Yes I realize it is not for "his cattle" specifically, but based on the nationwide price. I wasn't sure about the selling end... thinking maybe they had to be sold at a recognized place... but then, that's a dumb thought on my part... Sometimes I can wrap my head around a concept... and sometimes it just escapes my common sense. Your explanation made alot more sense to me....
My son is good friend's with this guy... and the guy that offered him the 2.15 has always been a good trusted buyer.... so i would think the contract was very good...
I would have made the deal and been satisfied with a guaranteed price down the road... if it tanks he will really lose out... Like @kenny thomas .... sign it and be happy... trying to wring out the POSSIBILITY of more sometimes is greedy. Yes, we all want to top the sale so to speak... but making a decent amount is sometimes better than chasing the last penny...
Another good point kenny made about the location of the animals vs the sale price... yes, here we often see a bit of a discount due to the trucking of animals to more distant feedout lots...
Another reason to have made the agreement... especially with no commission costs and no drift loss...
Oh well, we shall see..
@Dave, how do you get on a list like you mentioned about getting daily updates on things like that? I go on DVAuction often to check up on prices and all...
Virginia Cattlemen Association sells the LRP in your area Jan.
 

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