Profit Tracker: Cash Cattle Highest in Seven Years
The pendulum continues to swing in cattlemen’s favor and cash cattle prices hit their highest point in seven years last week. Cash cattle hit $150.53 per cwt., generally $3 higher than the previous week, and average closeouts were $158 per head in the black the week of Oct. 22, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.
Packer margins averaged $16 per head last week, a recovery after the previous week saw packers losing $15 per head. Packer margins a year ago were calculated at $659 per head.
Average breakeven for cattle placed on feed last week was $151 per cwt., which is up from the $139 calculated breakeven for cattle marketed last week. Cattle placed on feed a year ago this week had a breakeven of $125 per cwt.
The average cost of feeding a steer to finish weight was 12% higher for cattle marketed last week and is projected to be 17% higher for cattle placed on feed last week, according to the Profit Tracker. The Beef and Pork Profit Trackers are calculated by Sterling Marketing, Vale, Oregon.
Last week’s Choice beef cutout averaged $247 per cwt., about $6 per cwt. higher than the previous week and down $31 per cwt. (11%) from the same week a year ago.
Feed costs for cattle marketed last week averaged $604 per head, up $88 per head from last year. The estimated total cost for finishing a steer last week was $1,949 per head.
Cattle slaughter totaled an estimated 673,000 head, up 12,000 head from the same week last year. Packing plant capacity utilization was estimated at 90.8% compared to 89.0% the previous week and 89.3% last year.
Farrow to finish hog producers found profits of $18 per head last week, up $12 per head from the previous week and up $39 per head from last year’s $21 per head losses. Lean carcass prices averaged $99.38 per cwt., up $7.10 per cwt. from the previous week and up $29.72 per cwt. from last year.
Pork packers lost an average of $1 per head, down up about $7 per head from the previous week. A year ago pork packers saw profits of $70 per head. Hog slaughter was estimated at 2.571 million head, down 26,000 head from the previous week and down 35,000 head from last year.
Pork packer capacity utilization was estimated at 95.4% compared to 94.5% the previous week and 96.9% last year.
(Note: The Sterling Beef Profit Tracker calculates an average beef cutout value for the week in its estimates for feedyard and packer margins. Other prices in the weekly Profit Tracker also are calculated weekly averages. Feedyard margins are calculated on a cash basis only with no adjustment for risk management practices. The Beef and Pork Profit Trackers are intended only as a benchmark for the average cash costs of feeding cattle and hogs. Sterling Marketing is a private, independent beef and pork consulting firm not associated with any packing company or livestock feeding enterprise.)
