Latest News From Profit Tracker

Cattle and hog finishing margins were modestly positive the first week of December, marking the 11th consecutive week of profitability. Packer margins remain historically high.

Cattle feeders saw modest profits for the 10th consecutive week, a headline-worthy observation in normal times. The beef complex is not operating in normal times.

Cattle and hog feeding operations saw their margins remain modestly profitable last week with little movement in cash prices. Both cattle and hog feeding margins are higher than last year at the same time.

Cattle and hog finishing margins are both modestly positive for the seventh consecutive week, though hog margins saw a slight decline with lower lean carcass prices.

Closeouts on cattle and hogs marketed last week remain modestly profitable for the sixth consecutive week, according to calculations by Sterling Marketing.

Cattle and hog finishing margins remain positive for the sixth consecutive week, but cash prices for both declined modesty last week and margins eroded.

Both cattle feeding and hog finishing operations found modest profits for the fifth consecutive week calculated on a cash basis, according to the Sterling Profit Tracker.

Cattle and hog finishing margins are both positive for the fourth consecutive week despite the fact cash prices for cattle and hogs were slightly lower last week.

Average cattle and hog finishing margins are both positive for the third consecutive week, according to calculations in the Sterling Marketing Profit Tracker.

Cattle and hogs prices both moved higher last week and both enterprises posted profits on closeouts for the first time in several months.

Cash fed cattle prices inched higher the last week of July, but cattle feeders struggle with heavy per head losses. Finished hog prices rallied $4 last week, cutting per head losses by 25%.

Cattle feeding margins have slowly improved over the past few weeks, but average closeouts continue to show losses in excess of $100 per head.

Cattle feeders and pork producers continue to experience significant per head losses as market prices trend lower following slaughter and processing challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cattle feeding losses increased the week ending April 11, as cash prices fell $6 per cwt. on soft packer demand for market-ready cattle.

Declining cash fed cattle prices erased profit margins for cattle feeders last week, and declining wholesale beef prices cut packer margins by 34%.

Sharply higher beef cutout values produced windfall profits for beef packers last week while cattle feeders saw closeouts with average losses about steady, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.

Based on cash sales of $108.77, cattle closeouts lost an average of $90 per head the week ending March 15.

Cash cattle prices lost another $2 per cwt. last week, a decline of $7 over two weeks. Coupled with higher input costs on feeder cattle, the decline feedyards with an average $22 per head loss last week.

Sharply lower cash cattle prices erased $100 per head from closeout profit margins last week and left cattle feeders re-evaluating ideas of a spring rally.

Cash cattle prices stubbornly steady to $1 higher gave a slight boost to feedyard margins and left packer margins nearly unchanged last week.

Despite a $2 decline in cash fed cattle prices, feedyard closeouts reported positive mid-winter results while packer margins held firm.

Cattle feeders and beef packers are both experiencing modest mid-winter profits, though both margins were slightly lower on cash prices of $121.

Cattle feeders continue to find modest profits on a cash basis despite last week's $2 per cwt. market retreat.

Cattle feeding margins jumped $72 per head higher the week ending Jan. 25 as the value of feeder cattle calculated against those closeouts declined $8 per cwt.

Despite an average $1 decline in cash fed cattle prices last week, cattle feeding margins remained solidly profitable on a cash basis.

Beef packer profit margins fell to their lowest level in nearly two years last week while cattle feeding margins exceeded triple digits for the second consecutive week.

Cattle feeding profit margins exceeded beef packer margins last week for the first time in more than two years as cash cattle prices have increased 20% since September.

Beef packers saw their margins decline to the lowest level since before the Tyson packing plant fire August 9 as beef cutout prices declined and cash cattle prices increased.

Feedyards saw closeouts improve dramatically last week after the cash cattle market posted its third consecutive week of higher prices.

Gains in cash fed cattle prices did not translate into higher profits for feedyards last week as higher feeder cattle prices were calculated into breakevens.

Last week’s $1 increase in cash fed cattle prices did little for feedyard profits, but the $6.40 rally in wholesale beef prices added another $25 onto already large packer margins.

The combination of shrinking packer profits and smaller feedyard losses over the past six weeks has reduced the packer/feeder margin spread by 27%, according to the Sterling Beef Profit Tracker.

Last week's $2 rally in cash cattle prices helped narrow the spread between feedyard losses and packer profits.

Beef packers continued to maintain their leverage on cattle markets heading into the holiday-shortened first week of September.

Cattle feeding margins slipped further into the red last week on soft cash prices, while packer margins climbed to extreme heights.

As expected, beef packer margins jumped wildly higher the week ending Aug. 17, while cattle feeding margins slipped into the red.

The Sterling Beef Profit Tracker reports average cattle feeding closeouts were in the black last week, but with little room to spare.

Average cattle feeding losses totaled $106 per head for the week ending June 21.

Cattle feeding profit margins retreat further with a weaker cash market and limited packer interest.

Last week's $2 per cwt. decline in cash cattle prices left feedyard margins at near breakeven levels.

Cattle feeding margins are rapidly declining as cash cattle prices retreat from spring highs

Cattle feeding margins improved $43 per head last week as cash prices gained nearly $2 per cwt.

Cattle feeding margins improved $43 per head last week as cash prices gained nearly $2 per cwt.

Cattle feeding margins improved $16 per head last week as cash prices inched higher less than $1 per cwt.

Cattle feeding margins improved $16 per head last week as cash prices inched higher less than $1 per cwt.

Cattle feeding margins declined by $80 per head last week as cash prices slumped $1 to $2 per cwt.

Profit margins for cattle sold for slaughter last week declined $55 per head, according to the Sterling Profit Tracker.

Cattle feeding margins improved modestly on higher cash prices last week. Packer margins declined slightly.

Industry-wide average cattle feeding margins improved last week, while pork producer margins declined.

Feedyard closeouts saw modest improvement last week, but cattle feeders remain frustrated by their inability to push the cash market higher.