Sale barn price question.

[js1234]

At the vet today a rancher told us he sold his calves (mainly steers) earlier in the week for avg. $500 per less than last year. 600 - 700# were $168 - 177 & 700 - 800# were $160 - 164.50. Ouch!

An awful lot of 5wt. calves that sold this past spring/summer were $100/cwt. higher than the year prior. The year PRIOR to that was the highest those ranchers had ever sold their calves.
Point being, one thing that gets lost on some (certainly not all) cow/calf guys in this deteriorating market is that in many instances, 3 years ago they would have been stunned if their calves had brought what they are bringing today.
I know I have had to remind myself of that in relation to our cow/calf operations once or twice.

 

[Toad]

I think around here we are getting pretty close to the numbers we were at before the big jump.

 

[ram]

I think around here we are getting pretty close to the numbers we were at before the big jump.

I think around here we're getting screwed. The price to the consumer is still real high.

 

[Tim/South]

I think around here we are getting pretty close to the numbers we were at before the big jump.

I think around here we're getting screwed. The price to the consumer is still real high.

Retail prices dropped 15 cents. How kind of the packer/retail middle man to pass on such huge savings.

 

[ddd75]

I think around here we are getting pretty close to the numbers we were at before the big jump.

pretty much right on those numbers.

 

[Bigfoot]

When I'm fooling with feeder calves/backgrounding I don't really care if they are $80 or $160 cwt as long as they don't drop while I'm holding a group. I might even prefer $80 cwt, because I can buy more.

On my cow calf deal, I prefer $220 cwt

 

[Toad]

When I'm fooling with feeder calves/backgrounding I don't really care if they are $80 or $160 cwt as long as they don't drop while I'm holding a group. I might even prefer $80 cwt, because I can buy more.

On my cow calf deal, I prefer $220 cwt

Thats exactly what I was thinking. Lets say I'm making $200 per head with feeder calves, its much nicer to have double the amount of animals.

 

[ram]

Those folks that run cow calf operations shouldn't lose anything, we just won't be making as much. I feel for those that bought calves in the spring to put on summer grass. The price drop is way worse than a drought. I have a neighbor that bought 150 moma cows this spring and borrowed $200k to do it. He's holding the calves till spring and if they don't go back up he's selling everything and planting watermelons.

 

[Toad]

Its going to take some people giving up and the herd numbers to stop growing to get things to cycle up again.

 

[ram]

But the run was sure nice, wish it would of lasted another year or two.

 

[Cross-7]

Take into account that the value of a 450 lb. calf depends on what the projected value will be when that calf is 750 - 800 lb. and ready to be put on feed. If the stockers think futures will be up then they can pay us more for our calves.

Yep
And feeders are looking at what fats wil bring and on up the chain
Edit to add I think the joker in the deck is the imports coming in.

 

[Tim/South]

Those folks that run cow calf operations shouldn't lose anything, we just won't be making as much. I feel for those that bought calves in the spring to put on summer grass. The price drop is way worse than a drought. I have a neighbor that bought 150 moma cows this spring and borrowed $200k to do it. He's holding the calves till spring and if they don't go back up he's selling everything and planting watermelons.

The ones who jumped in and paid $3500 for a bred cow will take years to break even.

 

[denvermartinfarms]

Those folks that run cow calf operations shouldn't lose anything, we just won't be making as much. I feel for those that bought calves in the spring to put on summer grass. The price drop is way worse than a drought. I have a neighbor that bought 150 moma cows this spring and borrowed $200k to do it. He's holding the calves till spring and if they don't go back up he's selling everything and planting watermelons.

The ones who jumped in and paid $3500 for a bred cow will take years to break even.

They were already going to take years even with the record calf prices. Just going to take more years now. Or if they had any cheaper or paid for cattle they can take some away from them to help pay for the ones they overpaid for.

 

[Toad]

Those folks that run cow calf operations shouldn't lose anything, we just won't be making as much. I feel for those that bought calves in the spring to put on summer grass. The price drop is way worse than a drought. I have a neighbor that bought 150 moma cows this spring and borrowed $200k to do it. He's holding the calves till spring and if they don't go back up he's selling everything and planting watermelons.

The ones who jumped in and paid $3500 for a bred cow will take years to break even.

They were already going to take years even with the record calf prices. Just going to take more years now. Or if they had any cheaper or paid for cattle they can take some away from them to help pay for the ones they overpaid for.

If you bought a 4 year old cow for $3500 and now can only clear maybe $500 per year from her. Yea when she is paid for she will be 11. Ouch :help:

 

[denvermartinfarms]

Yep, and the way I figured it back when they were bringing 3500$, a 6 year old cow would be 10 before she was paid for. That's 3 years less than the way you figure it at the current calf prices, and in my opinion it was a bad buy even with the market like it was back then.

 

[Toad]

Yep, and the way I figured it back when they were bringing 3500$, a 6 year old cow would be 10 before she was paid for. That's 3 years less than the way you figure it at the current calf prices, and in my opinion it was a bad buy even with the market like it was back then.

I completely agree. I almost think sometimes people forget this is a business and its not easy money.

 

[Ojp6]

A lot of the guys I saw pay 3,500 for cows had more money than they knew what to do with to start with.

 

[skyhightree1]

A lot of the guys I saw pay 3,500 for cows had more money than they knew what to do with to start with.

I seen some of that but mostly seen people that didnt know the business but wanted to get in thinking they would be rich in a few years but didnt know the particulars and didn't do their homework.

 

[jltrent]

A lot of the guys I saw pay 3,500 for cows had more money than they knew what to do with to start with.

I seen some of that but mostly seen people that didnt know the business but wanted to get in thinking they would be rich in a few years but didnt know the particulars and didn't do their homework.

Yep, I have seen a few around here buy piles of high dollar cows/heifers as I guess they thought it wouldn't end. At current prices there is still a little money in them if you penny pinch, but if they drop like the futures say breaking even will be hard.

 

[msplmtneer]

JSCATTLE the only way I know that you can get the answer to your question about how auctioneers get the price to start the sale is ask them.
The sales I have watched the auctioneers say a price no bids goes down till he gets a bid then goes from there, but how he comes up with that first number I don't know.
:tiphat: